Remember
by gypsymel218
Summary: Set in GMG arc. After the final battle against the dragons is over, Lucy lies in a coma in the infirmary of Fairy Tail. Natsu misses his best friend but what will become of their friendship if she never wakes up? NO CHARACTER DEATH, NatsuXLucy, Nalu (with a side of Gruvia, Jerza and Gale)
1. Chapter 1

**Remember**

**Cover art: MEMIsWonderwall**

**Hope you like it!**

* * *

Lucy didn't know when she had started sprinting, but she knew she couldn't stop.

Explosions surrounded her as she ran through flying debris and the remnants of building, Crocus city's beauty now ravaged by the battles raging between the wizards and dragons. Lucy clutched the diary of her future self tightly and dodged an attack from a baby dragon. She wanted to help the other wizards that she caught glimpses of but she had to tell the others about the contents of the diary. There wasn't any time to lose.

"Natsu! Happy! Erza! Gray! Wendy!"

_When you don't want to see them, they're everywhere and when you look for them, they're nowhere,_ Lucy thought desperately as she ran towards a source of commotion. There was a flash of fire and an angry roar, followed by…Rogue's shouts and Natsu's laughter. Lucy pushed her legs and sprinted faster.

"Natsu!"

Lucy finally sprinted into a clearing and what she saw almost made her stop running completely. Motherglare and Atlas Flame stood across from each other, with the future Rogue on Motherglare and Natsu on the flame dragon. Four impressive figures stood outlined by the light of the red moon; the tension was thick enough to cut with a knife. Small fires burnt the ground around them and seemed to lean towards the fiery pair. Natsu looked a little worse for wear but he stood defiantly in front of Rogue. Possessed with new determination, Lucy ran towards him.

"Natsu!"

When Natsu heard his name being called by someone who sounded like Lucy, he thought his ears were malfunctioning. Lucy wasn't supposed to be anywhere _near_ here. She was supposed to be safer somewhere else, maybe fighting the little dragons that Motherglare had dropped. But when he turned, there was no mistaking that blonde head, clutching something that looked like a notebook.

"Lucy! Don't come over here, it's too dangerous!"

Lucy was confused. What was Natsu saying? She ran closer to hear him better. "What?"

Natsu looked between Lucy and Rogue, his gaze conflicted. Rogue smirked. "Oh…so she means something to you, does she?"

Natsu's gaze hardened. "Don't you dare touch her."

"I won't, Natsu…" Rogue gave him a smile that chilled his bones. Rogue looked him in the eye. "Motherglare. Dispose of the girl."

Natsu's eyes widened. "NO!"

* * *

If someone asked Natsu afterwards what happened, he wouldn't be able to say anything. He felt like he was frozen to the spot but he couldn't bring himself to move his eyes away from Lucy. As if in slow motion, Motherglare gave an almighty roar and turned to face Lucy. Her footsteps faltered slightly as Motherglare raised a deadly claw. Natsu felt like crying out but for some reason, his voice stuck in his throat and wouldn't work properly. Lucy's eyes widened in realisation and her hand automatically reached for her keys but Natsu could see that even she knew there wasn't enough time. Motherglare's claws swatted her aside with a thud that seemed to stop his own heart, as if she were nothing but a pebble in the way. He watched, powerless, as his best friend was thrown into the air and seemed to hang suspended in mid-air for a millisecond, her body graceful even as she started to fall. And then gravity caught up to them and Natsu felt a pain deep within him that seemed to echo Lucy's pain, before she crashed into a building with a sickening crack.

Natsu didn't know what possessed him after he saw Lucy fall. All he knew was that he felt a rage and a fear more intense than anything he had ever felt in his life, more intense than the fear that gripped him when Igneel vanished or when he saw Gray about to do Iced Shell or when he thought Erza was gone. All he knew was that he was engulfed by flames and he couldn't think properly, and it was just attack, after attack, after attack. Even Atlas Flame seemed to feel his new determination to beat Rogue and Motherglare.

After what seemed like a cloudy haze of fire and heat and anger and fear, Natsu collapsed to his knees, Rogue and Motherglare defeated in front of him. But he didn't let himself rest. He dragged his battered body to the building he knew Lucy had crashed through and sifted through the debris, hands shaking. His eyes landed on something golden. Celestial keys.

He darted forwards towards the light, almost dreading seeing his best friend. Natsu searched through the rubble and wood until his hand touched another's. Lucy. With a deep breath, he pulled her towards him and into his arms.

Lucy looked ten times worse than he did. She had scrapes all over her body and bruises were forming quickly, purple, green and black blemishes on her normally perfect skin. She felt fragile, and Natsu was afraid that if he held on too tight she would break. Natsu listened intently; a heartbeat. And the smallest puffs of breath left her mouth. Natus thought he would die of relief.

"Luce? Luce, can you hear me? Answer me!"

For a horrible moment, there was nothing. And then, a shuddering breath. Two brown eyes looked up at his.

"Lucy!"

"N-Natsu…"

Something touched his hand. A notebook. It was brown and plain, but the look in Lucy's eye made him take it. She seemed to relax as his hands grasped the little book and she smiled that special smile that would light up any room.

"Read…"

Lucy's eyes started slipping close again. Natsu panicked briefly, almost dropping the book as he grasped her shoulders.  
"Luce! Don't you die on me! Come on, Luce, we're a team! Don't you close your eyes!"

But Lucy just smiled as her eyelids fell and covered the perfect shade of chocolate brown, a peaceful expression on her face. Natsu felt like his heart stopped beating. His eyes stung.

And then his Dragon Slayer hearing picked up the faintest of heartbeats; soft and irregular, but undeniably there. Natsu looked down at her unconscious form and the notebook grasped in his hand. Keeping her in his arms, he opened the book and read from the very beginning.


	2. Chapter 2

**Remember – Chapter 2**

* * *

Last Chapter

_And then his Dragon Slayer hearing picked up the faintest of heartbeats; soft and irregular, but undeniably there. Natsu looked down at her unconscious form and the notebook grasped in his hand. Keeping her in his arms, he opened the book and read from the very beginning. _

* * *

The infirmary was quiet.

It would only make sense that it was this quiet; it was a little past two in the morning, and everyone was resting after the final battle they had won.

Natsu sat in a chair beside his best friend. Lucy's blonde hair was spread across the pillow, her cheeks pale and her form unmoving apart from the slight rise and fall of her chest that was the only sign of life. Natsu had sat on a hard, uncomfortable chair and not moved from it as soon as the battle was over. His eyelids were closed as he laid his head on the bed next to Lucy and even in sleep he kept one hand around Lucy's cold one.

There was a soft, golden shimmer in the air and a man in a suit appear, with a pair of sunglasses perched on his nose. He had a shock of unruly orange hair and while he was the very epitome of elegance, his expression was sombre. He looked at the sleeping figures and recalled the conversation with Porlyusica.

"_Will she be okay?"_

_The afternoon light shone softly on the girl's face as Porlyusica looked at Loke with an unreadable expression._

"_We don't know yet. Wendy and I have done our best but the girl's in a coma. Her body needs time to heal and repair itself. She may wake up tomorrow, next week or never at all. Be prepared for a long wait."_

_Loke swallowed and glanced at the blonde mage again. In her unconscious state, she looked so vulnerable and innocent. Loke looked towards the window at Natsu, his salmon pink hair standing out in the white infirmary. His hands were clenched tightly in fists and his expression hard. _

_Loke nodded once at Porlyusica before standing. "We'll check on her every day. Thank you."_

_Porlyusica's expression softened slightly. "Be prepared though; even if she wakes, she may not remember."_

_Loke gave another stiff nod before vanishing in a shimmer of golden light. Porlyusica gave Natsu a long look before walking out of the infirmary as well. As soon as silence reigned once more, Natsu walked over to the bed._

"_Luce…I'm sorry I couldn't save you." _

Nine more golden gate keys and five silver gate keys shimmered into existence as they looked upon the unconscious form of their master and friend. Loke smiled slightly at the two figures.

"Please wake up, Lucy."

* * *

Today marked the third month.

Natsu had gone to the infirmary every day for three months, yet Lucy showed no signs of waking. In fact, she stayed very much the same. No bright smile, cheery greeting or even movement was seen from the blonde. Natsu often saw her celestial spirits. He was surprised (and a little freaked out) when Aquarius showed up one day without any warning but she was shockingly kind and didn't make a single snarky comment. Natsu gradually got used to seeing Lucy's spirits around as well and talked with them on occasion (though he was still too scared to talk to Aquarius much).

Eventually, days passed, weeks passed and the third month of Lucy's comatose state had arrived. There were cherry blossoms that sometimes floated through the open window of the infirmary and Natsu knew Lucy would have loved it.

Erza, Gray and Wendy visited every day with Natsu, but Natsu always stayed the longest. The four friends would gaze upon their comrade as she lay still and unmoving, reminiscing about past adventures and telling her about new ones.

Natsu felt the need to protect his best friend more than ever. He didn't know why he felt this way (well, he did. He was just in a state of denial); all he knew was Mira was currently in match-making heaven. He just wished that Lucy would open her eyes.

Natsu told Lucy everything, every day. Everything from what he had at breakfast (which was quite a long list) to how many complaints had arrived for the Master that week. Lisanna had helped Natsu a lot. The two friends were close once again and bonded even more over their memories of Lucy, as Natsu discovered that she and Lucy were actually very good friends. It didn't really help Natsu's state of denial that Lisanna kept teasing him about his feelings for a certain blonde haired celestial mage.

Natsu made his way up to the infirmary as usual and was not surprised to see Loke already standing next to her bed. Walking up to her bed, Natsu grabbed a chair and sat down, sharing a nod with the celestial spirit.

There was a moment of silence before Loke took a deep breath. "There's something you should know…"

Natsu looked up. The celestial spirit looked weary and slightly…apprehensive? "What's up, Loke?"

"I, and all the other celestial spirits, feel that Lucy may be waking soon."

Natsu stared at him. "You're serious?"

"Yes. Though we don't know what she'll be like when she wakes," Loke replied with a glance at the blond mage. "Porlyusica warned us before that there may be some…difficulties."

"Yeah, I know. She'll be fine though." Natsu looked down at Lucy. Her face was still pale and peaceful but there was something about her unconscious form that didn't sit well with Natsu, and made her comatose state so much more real.

"She'll be fine."

* * *

The sky shone a brilliant azure blue and not a single cloud marred its perfection. The city of Magnolia woke to the bustling sounds of markets and the smells of cooking breakfast wafted through the open window of small house just outside the town.

A salmon-pink haired figure lay asleep on the floor, surrounded by random pieces of furniture and clothing. Next to him, a blue cat slept soundly on a cushion, little puffs of air exiting his mouth as he breathed. The two looked so calm and peaceful that it seemed a shame to wake them.

"Natsu!"

The door slammed open with a bang and Natsu woke up, confused and blinking the sleep out of his eyes as Happy sat up blearily next to him. To his surprise, Gray stood in the doorway of his house but there was something about the look in his eyes that made Natsu nervous.

"Gray?"

"It's Lucy, she's–"

Natsu didn't let Gray finish his sentence. The salmon-haired boy tore out of the house and into the streets of Magnolia, closely followed by his two companions. The three friends ran towards the run down building with the Fairy Tail insignia and ran through the guild, ignoring the calls of their other friends and family. Finally, the three reached the familiar, white infirmary, where Erza, Wendy, Mira and Master were already waiting. Natsue skidded to a halt.

Lucy.

She was just as beautiful as he remembered, even throughout her three months of unconsciousness, but it was seeing her awake and sitting up, the sun shining softly on her golden locks, that took his breath away.

"Lucyyyyyyy!"

Happy flew happily towards the blonde but Erza stopped the new arrivals from moving. "Wait."

Natsu, against his better judgement, ignored her and ducked under her arm, his heart pounding painfully against his ribcage. "Luce!"

But he stopped short as soon as he saw her chocolate brown eyes because they held none of their usual warmth and happiness. Instead, all he saw were blank slates of brown. The girl on the bed looked at the mages surrounding her in confusion.

"Who are you?"


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

**Wow! Thanks for all the favourites and follows guys! This is also my first fic so I hope it lives up to expectations :) **

**Not too much happens in this chapter - it's mostly a 'Lucy's POV' sorta thing. And I'm still thinking but the antagonist of this story may be Minerva...just letting you know. **

**Enjoy!**

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Last Chapter

"_Luce!"_

_But he stopped short as soon as he saw her chocolate brown eyes because they held none of their usual warmth and happiness. Instead, all he saw were blank slates of brown. The girl on the bed looked at the mages surrounding her in confusion._

"_Who are you?"_

* * *

Lucy was drifting.

It wasn't like she was really conscious that she was drifting. She was just in a large, dark and empty space and she assumed she was floating through said space because she couldn't feel anything. Vaguely, she realised that she probably should have felt something; emotions, things or maybe just pain. Pain seemed to be the most important feeling here but for some reason, she felt nothing. Only a large hole inside of her and the need to fill it to become complete once more.

There was a deafening silence around her that she couldn't decipher. Was she surrounded by noise? Silence? She couldn't tell. It was so dark and cold. She needed warmth and...something. Something was tugging at her memory and she knew it was important and would help fill the gaping hole inside of her. What was missing? Warmth, perhaps? She had no idea.

Lucy kept drifting for a long time. Occasionally, there'd be glimmers of fiery red or golden shimmers, like...her spirits. She recalled a sort of icy blue that felt cold but it was different to the cold, dark emptiness of this...void. And there was a different sort of red; scarlet. That was really the only word to describe the colour. But Lucy had no idea what any of these colours meant and she certainly didn't know how they related to her. Her last memories…Hargeon Port? She vaguely remembered arriving at Hargeon but that felt like such a long time ago.

She remembered that in the deep, dark void of emptiness, a small light had appeared one day. It was tiny, so small that she didn't know if she'd imagined it or not. But she discovered that by leaning towards the pinprick of light, she could travel towards it. So she did. She felt like she'd drifted for hours, waiting in the cold darkness until there was a sudden rush and she felt light and warm all around.

That, Lucy assumed, was what happened when she woke up.

When she woke, it was warm. She could feel the sun's heat on her face for the first time in a long time and she felt sheets and a mattress underneath her. _Okay_, Lucy thought_, I can feel_. Her finger twitched and she felt the comfort of soft, cotton sheets. Perhaps where she was staying at Hargeon? There must have been a window; where else would the sun be coming in?

Lucy willed herself awake bit by bit. She could smell something; cooking and maybe booze? That was strange. Lucy didn't normally drink alcohol, so why was there booze? Then she heard something. Talking. The voices sounded close, but unfamiliar. _Wait_, Lucy thought, suddenly alert, _is there someone in my room!?_ Lucy strained her ears a little.

"...she wakes. It's been more than three months, Master."

Lucy felt her brain freeze at this information. More than three months? Were they talking about her!? And who was this Master?"

"I know, Erza. I'm getting worried too. But Porlyusica said that it's up to her. She and Wendy have done their best."

Lucy frowned. Up to her? Was he talking about waking up? Lucy felt confused. Who were these people anyway?

"But Master, it's been three months…"

"Mira, everyone in the guild is trying to help. Levy is in charge of research. If there's anyone who can find something, it's her. We just have to put our faith in Lucy now."

Lucy felt a little nervous. All these people putting their faith in her! And for what? She didn't even know what was going on. The sun felt a little brighter on her eyelids now; or was it a lamp? Either way, she felt it was too bright. She shifted her head slightly and groaned when the light remained persistent as ever.

All conversation stopped.

Then, a tentative voice. "Lucy-san? Are you awake?"

Lucy put all her strength into opening her eyes. She might not know who these people were, but they seemed to know her and care about her. She had to wake for them, if no one else. Erza, Mira, Master...Levy...the guild…? Slowly, Lucy cracked her eyelids open and saw for the first time in three months.

She appeared to be in some sort of infirmary. Everything was white or in pale pastel colours, with flowers in vases surrounded her bead, strange little gifts on bedside tables and bottles of potions and medicines balanced precariously on tabletops. There were four figures standing in front of her; two women, a girl and an old man. One of the women was wearing armour and had scarlet hair while the other had white hair and was wearing a red dress. _Strange_, Lucy thought, _scarlet...like I saw before…_ There was a girl with bright blue hair in pigtails standing next to her and the short, old man looked grave.

"Where...where am I?"

Lucy's throat hurt when she talked and came out scratchy from lack of use. She saw the figures glance at each other. The scarlet headed woman came forward slowly, her face open and kind.  
"Lucy, you're in the Fairy Tail infirmary. You're safe now."

"I'll let the others know she's woken up…" the white haired woman ran from the room and Lucy glanced up briefly, her eyes widening in realisation. Was that...Mirajane, the supermodel!?

Lucy's eyes widened even more as the red-head's words sunk in. She glanced at the people in front of her. The people appeared worried and anxious about her, but she had no idea who they were. She didn't understand anything at this point. Why wasn't she in Hargeon? She wasn't complaining about being in Fairy Tail but this was all very strange and surreal...

"I...what happened? I thought I was staying in Hargeon...how did I get to Fairy Tail? And…" Lucy stopped speaking abruptly as she saw the pink insignia on her hand. "I'm in _Fairy Tail_!?"

Lucy missed the worried glances shared by the other mages in the room as she inspected her Fairy Tail guild mark. What had happened to their blond celestial mage?

"I-I don't understand! I mean, I'd _love_ to join Fairy Tail b-but I'm in _Fairy Tail_!? And was that Mirajane before? W-Would that mean that you're Master Makarov!?" Lucy knew she was babbling now but there were so many missing blanks in her head that she felt like she was gonna do a Natsu and explo- wait, what? _Natsu..._Lucy pondered, _who's Natsu? Why was I thinking of someone called Natsu? And why is my head hurting even more!?_

"Master, I think we should call Polyusica-san," the blue-haired girl said timidly, large eyes peering anxiously at the confused blonde. "Lucy-san may be suffering from memory loss."

"I will go and find her," the scarlet haired mage straightened and Lucy immediately backed away slightly. She looked a lot more threatening now that she had a mission. But the woman's gaze softened as it landed on Lucy. "Rest well, Lucy."

So Lucy was left in the awkward presence of a young girl and an old man until the whirlwind arrival of three males.

Lucy's first impression of these males was...strange. One, with raven coloured hair, was not wearing a shirt, even though it looked like he'd come from the streets. The second was a blue cat with wings. The third was a man with salmon-pink hair (salmon? Where did _that_ come from?) and a weird outfit consisting of a white, scale-patterned scarf, vest and pants. All three had the Fairy Tail insignia in different colours, which led to Lucy wondering if all Fairy Tail males were this...different.

The two women from before had returned with them and Lucy had barely gotten used to the slightly claustrophobic feeling that came with a room full of people when the pink-haired man dodged forward, a crazy grin on his face.

"Luce!"

Lucy instinctively jerked backwards slightly. "Who are you?"

* * *

Porlyusica observed the blonde mage in front of her, brows furrowed in concentration. Master Makarov, Erza, Wendy and Mira stood together in a corner, observing her assessment of the mage.

"She appears to have lost her more recent memories, including all her memories of Fairy Tail," Porlyusica said. "Her last memory is of Hargeon Port."

"Is there any way we can trigger her memories?" Erza asked, her face serious as ever. Wendy clutched tightly onto Carla as the group looked anxiously at Porlyusica.

"Well...she doesn't exactly have her memories." Porlyusica glanced at the confused girl on the bed before rolling her eyes at the shocked eyes of the group.

"She lost them!?"

"How did she lose them...if she's been in a coma all this time?"

Porlyusica huffed. "It's not that simple. Her memories appear to have been taken from her. For her to remember anything, we will need to reclaim her memories first."

"But...how do we find them?" Wendy asked sadly, eyes gazing imploringly at the pink-haired woman. Under Wendy's innocent gaze, Porlyusica softened.

"Well...I hear dragon slayers are quite good at finding things."

* * *

**So yeah, that's the new chapter! I'll try to maintain the whole 'weekly upload' thing so next chapter should be up next Saturday ^_^**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hi everyone! ****Thanks for all the positive feedback! **

**H****ere's chapter 4 - hope you like it!**

* * *

Last Chapter

_Porlyusica huffed. "It's not that simple. Her memories appear to have been taken from her. For her to remember anything, we will need to reclaim her memories first."_

_"But...how do we find them?" Wendy asked sadly, eyes gazing imploringly at the pink-haired woman. Under Wendy's innocent gaze, Porlyusica softened._

_"Well...I hear dragon slayers are quite good at finding things."_

* * *

To state that Lucy was confused would be an understatement.

All she knew was that one minute she had been surrounded by rushing light and the next, she had woken up surrounded by strange mages she only knew through magazines; the mages of Fairy Tail. She was just waiting patiently for someone to explain everything to her but her patience was running thin. This strange pink-haired woman kept saying her memories were taken but Lucy had no recollection of being kidnapped or taken so how could her memories have been taken? While the mages talked, Lucy took the time to glance around the room. Some flowers stood in a vase on her bedside table, where a newspaper lay. Lucy sat a little straighter. It should be the year X784, according to Lucy's memory. If the mages were telling the truth…

Lucy took a deep breath and peered at the newspaper. Her eyes widened.

_X791_.

The truth didn't slowly settle around her. It slammed into her like a tonne of bricks and didn't seem to understand the concept of shock. Seven years had passed… the pink haired woman was right. Lucy could feel herself slowly sinking into a bottomless pit of despair so she drew her thoughts away from one problem to another: her memories.

According to Porlyusica, her memories had been taken. By whom, she had no clue. She didn't exactly have that many enemies but she assumed that the Lucy with memories did. Her memories had been taken with a rare spell called _Rememoria_, where an individual's memories were stolen, buried in the mind or, in some extreme cases, forever lost. Because it was so ancient, hard to cast and could only be undone by such rare properties, it had only been used about five times in the history of magic. No on in Fairy Tail knew much, if anything, about it, not even a blue-haired bookworm named Levy (who was apparently one of her best friends. It wasn't that hard to imagine. Lucy liked her instantly). The Master had had to look through the oldest volumes in the Fairy Tail archives to dig some information out. Porlyusica was also a big help. Combining the information of one of her books and the Fairy Tail books, she came to the conclusion that Dragon Slayers would be able to reverse _Rememoria_. According to the books, only Dragon Slayers could collect and retrieve the memories of those cursed with _Rememoria_, as long as there were memories left to retrieve, but if the memories were not collected within a year, they would be lost forever. The books didn't say how many Dragon Slayers were needed for the procedure but Porlyusica figured the more helpers, the better. Three months of their time had already passed but without knowing who had taken them, they had no leads. To Lucy's immense surprise, most of Fairy Tail had taken up the task of searching with tremendous vigour and to Lucy, who didn't remember a single member, it was the kindest anyone had been to her in a long time. _Since Mother was here_, her brain thought treacherously but before her thoughts could stray into the dangerous territories of 'home', Lucy felt all eyes on her.

"Huh?"

The Master chuckled. "We were just saying that while we looked for the solution to this _Rememoria_ we should try to trigger your memory by having you spend time with some of your closest friends."

"Oh, that sounds good. Thank you," said Lucy, her face flushed. The mages looked expectantly at her and she felt her face grow warmer at the attention. "Um...sorry, but I'm not really sure who they are…"

There was a sudden clank of metal as Erza stepped forward, eyes gleaming with determination. "I'm sorry, Lucy. My name is Erza Scarlet. We are in the same team, as well as Natsu Dragneel and Gray Fullbuster."

"Hey!"

"And Happy."

Both men grinned at her when mentioned but Lucy couldn't help but notice the hints of sadness in their expressions and the smiles that didn't seem to reach their eyes.

"We'll go around to some places, yes? I think a stop to Lucy's apartment first would be good. Her keys are there and they haven't visited today, so they must know something is different," Erza continued, taking charge and allowing no room for argument. Then, what she said sunk in. Her keys! God, Aquarius was going to kill her for being weak...or thank her for the three months she could spend with her boyfriend. But strangely, Lucy felt more powerful. She felt connections with many more keys than she had at Hargeon Port and couldn't wait to meet them all. Well, re-meet them.

"Alright! Let's get outta here!"

"Not so fast!"

With a mighty fist, Master Makarov stopped Natsu's steps and squashed him flat. Lucy, alarmed, was about to ask if he was alright but decided against it when everyone continued to look on in indifference.

"Porlyusica, anything Lucy should avoid? Any medicines to take? Herbal remedies?" asked Makarov, apparently not seeing the dark look on Porlyusica's face.

"NO! Move it! I hate humans...always ruining things. She shouldn't do too much physical exercise as her body is still weak from her three month coma but apart from that, she can do pretty much everything she did before."

_I'm right here, you know,_ Lucy thought with a sigh. But she smiled at Erza and her new (or old) team. "Alright, let's go then!"

"Aye!"

* * *

"This is my apartment!?"

Lucy stared around at the small, homey apartment and immediately fell in love. This was perfect! She felt a comforting sense of familiarity and security as soon as she stepped through the doors and knew that this was definitely her apartment. And on the table...lay a manuscript. She must've written down that story she'd thought of.

"Yes. Although we often come here too." Erza smiled at the blonde and looked around the room as if it were her own. Gray had already stripped and was currently on her bed (why were Fairy Tail mages so weird?) while Natsu was rummaging around the kitchen. _You guys sure made yourselves at home_, Lucy thought. Her eyes landed on a small pouch on her desk, silver and gold metal twinkling in the sun. Her keys. Erza followed her line of sight.

"Ah, your keys. They've been very worried about you. I think you should summon them."

"Okay…" Lucy stepped forward hesitantly and her fingers curled around the warm keys. There was a piercing, golden light and she shielded her eyes, blinded.

When she opened them, she nearly fainted.

Standing in front of her were about fifteen spirits. And ten were...Golden Gate keys!? How had she gotten so many? She had all of them apart from Libra and Pisces and each spirit looked at her warmly.

"Lucy! Your nice body is back!"

"Punishment, princess?"

"I'm sorry! Welcome back!"

"Pun-pun!"

Lucy almost dropped the keys in surprise at the warm welcome when a figure in a suit with orange hair stepped forward. "Lucy, my love, things have been awfully quiet without you." He pushed his sunglasses up. "Welcome back!"

Gray rolled his eyes at the theatrics of the spirit but Lucy took a step back. "Um...I'm sorry…but I'm afraid I don't remember most of you…"

There was a small silence. Erza explained the current situation to the spirits and Lucy felt a pang of sympathy as the spirits expressions dropped.

"Levy and most of Fairy Tail are currently looking for some clues as to who took them. As soon as we get a lead, the Dragon Slayers will help retrieve the memories. That is the plan, anyway," Erza finished. The spirits all looked forlornly at Lucy but she managed to smile back at them.  
"Hey... I may not be able to remember you but I know that we're friends. I can feel it. I'll be back in no time!" Lucy thought it was strange that she was the one who'd lost her memory but comforting everyone instead of the other way around but before she could ponder the thought, her apartment door flew open. A man named Jet stood in the doorway.

"You have to come to the guild. There's been a lead!"

* * *

**So that's chapter 4! I know not much happens but I just felt the need to clarify some of the information. I can't believe that so many people have followed or favourited this story (well, it's a lot of people to me. Still a newbie here!) **

**A massive THANK YOU to everyone who's read the story! Chapter 5 will be up sometime next weekend!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Wow! Thanks for all the wonderful support, everyone. It means so much to me every time I see a new follow or favourite or review. Thanks to RosesAndRavens for a good idea! Here's chapter 5!**

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Last Chapter

_"Hey... I may not be able to remember you but I know that we're friends. I can feel it. I'll be back in no time!" Lucy thought it was strange that she was the one who'd lost her memory but comforting everyone instead of the other way around but before she could ponder the thought, her apartment door flew open. A man named Jet stood in the doorway._

_"You have to come to the guild. There's been a lead!" _

* * *

Once Lucy had reunited with her spirits and had them safely attached to her belt, the group ran back to the guild, hearts pounding and minds a vicious tornado of thoughts. Lucy hadn't met Levy for long but she trusted the petite, blue haired girl with all her heart. If anyone could help find a cure for her amnesia, it was her.

Lucy couldn't help but feel surprised at these thoughts. She'd only met these people for about a day and she already felt so attached to them. Erza, with her ever present support and courage, Gray, with his strange habits and warm friendship that was the complete opposite of his magic, Happy, with his obsession over fish and ability to make her laugh and want to strangle him simultaneously and Natsu, with his fiery, immature attitude and friendly grin - her old team. It made her feel warm inside just thinking about it.

The guild building appeared in front of them, homely and welcoming as ever. The five rushed in after Jet and stopped short. The guild was a massive mess of thick, leather bound novels scattering pages everywhere and complete and utter chaos. More than half the guild was fighting (which, according to Mira, was relatively normal) and Levy sat in a pile of books so high they could only see her face. The door slammed shut behind them and Levy's eyes shot up.

"Lu-chan! I've found something!" The girl struggled out of her fort of books and made her way towards them, balancing a heavy book in one hand with her glasses perched precariously on the top of her head.

"Look, here, it says, _'Once memories have been taken, the magical signature of the mage who took them may be traced using the spell below. This is the only spell that could trace the signature and if too much time has passed since the loss of memories, the signature may be too faint to trace at all. It is an extremely powerful spell and can only be conducted at dusk.'_ We've still got a chance, Lu-chan! We'd have to do it as soon as possible. Dusk is almost...now! Do you think you're up for it now? The book also said that the mage may feel dizzy or get a headache after the spell is performed because it sort of does a scan of your head. Are you feeling good enough for it?"

Levy's anxious face made Lucy feel a little unsure but she knew she had to find the mage who took them, if not for her own benefit then for her friends. This wasn't fair to them either.

"Okay. I'll do it now," said Lucy, her expression determined. Seeing her friends' hopeful faces, Lucy thought it'd be worth getting a million headaches just to make them smile. "Are _you_ up for it, Levy-chan? It did say that this is an extremely powerful spell...I just don't want you to get hurt because of me."

Levy gave her a bright smile. "It's fine! I've studied it for a bit and I should be able to do it. Okay, now's the time. We should go to the infirmary, where it's quieter."

"Wait, Levy." Erza's voice stopped the group. "How will we know who the mage is from the signature? We may not have encountered them before and the signature may not make any sense to us."

"Oh, it should be okay...their signature is just a bit of their magic, like a sample. We'll still have to figure out who it is but at least it's better than nothing!" Levy's excited and determined grin was infectious and Lucy followed her friend into the infirmary, trying to mentally prepare herself. But she didn't even know how the spell would do a 'head scan' of her brain so how could she prepare?

"Okay, Lu-chan!" Levy interrupted her thoughts. "Natsu, Erza, Gray; watch out for the signature of the mage and the type of magic. Lu-chan and I might not be able to see it while the spell takes place. I'm going to start!"

Levy started chanting in an unknown language that sounded ancient and powerful and her magic shone through the infirmary. Lucy closed her eyes as she felt the effects of the spell take place. There was a slight tingle in her fingers that slowly travelled through her body until it reached her brain. A sharp pain almost made her wince but she bit her tongue and struggled through the intense pain that was increasing steadily. The warm tingle had been replaced by sharp jabs and she felt like her head was going to explode. Levy cried out the incantation one last time and a bright multi-coloured light enveloped Lucy in a painful embrace before she blacked out.

* * *

"It was blue, mainly, with some other flashes of colours...that would have been the signature, wouldn't it?"

Lucy stirred slightly, hearing a familiar male voice. Gray. Her head hurt and she felt like she'd been run over by a train but she tried to make sense of the conversation going on around her.

"Yes...I think so. I saw it too, even while casting the spell. I didn't expect it to be that bright or that obvious. It says here that the brighter it is, the more powerful the mage...I'm not sure that's a good thing."

Lucy recognised that voice instantly as Levy's. She sighed mentally. At least Levy hadn't been hurt or used up too much magic power during the spell.

"It might help us narrow down the suspects. Most powerful mages are often quite famous and well-known. We can ask the Master about it. I can't help but think that that magic is familiar…" Erza's thoughtful voice appeared to be closest to her and Lucy felt the urge to open her eyes. However, her energy failed her and she simply lay there, listening.

"You think so too? There's an endless number of places we could have seen it though...was it recent?" Lucy couldn't help but feel warm as she felt rather than heard her friends, pondering Gray's question. But there was one voice missing and Lucy couldn't help but wonder where the pink-haired dragon slayer was.

"It was recent. Perhaps at the Grand Magic Games. There were many types of magic there. I'll think on it. It'll come to me soon enough." Even with her eyes closed, Lucy could hear the frustration in Erza's voice. She made another effort to open her eyes as Happy chimed in.

"Is Lucy okay, Wendy? She still hasn't woken- Lucy!"

There was a flurry of activity around her as she cracked open her eyelids. The sky was dark outside and candles were lit around her bed in the infirmary. Erza's anxious face appeared in front of her.

"Lucy! Are you feeling alright?"

"Lu-chan! I'm sorry! I didn't realise it'd be that bad! I wouldn't' have brought it up today if I had!"

"Sheesh, you gave us a scare."

"Lucy-san, I hope you're feeling better!"

Lucy smiled at her friends and sat up gingerly, ignoring the pounding in her head that accompanied the action. "Thanks, everyone! I'll be alright...I heard you guys talking about the signature. Do you think you know who it is?"

Erza frowned. "Well, we believe it might be someone from the Grand Magic Games but there were so many types of magic there that it's hard to pinpoint each owner's magic. Seeing as you heard our conversation, do you have any ideas?"

"Well, I can't really remember…" Lucy said apologetically, rubbing the back of her neck awkwardly.

Erza's face immediately froze. "I am sorry, Lucy. I forgot. Please forgive me."

Lucy gave her a small grin. "It's fine. I have a spirit that could help though…" Lucy made to grab her keys but Wendy's hand stopped her. "Lucy-san! You're still too weak to use magic at the moment. I think you should just wait until tomorrow."

Lucy smiled gratefully at the young mage. "Thanks, Wendy! I almost forgot...I guess we'll continue tomorrow then. Thanks guys!"

Outside the infirmary doors, a salmon-haired dragon slayer tilted his head at the new information he'd heard, before dashing towards the Fairy Tail archives.

* * *

"Lucy, when you're ready."

Lucy nodded at Erza and took a deep breath. This was the first spirit she'd summoned since her amnesia incident but she had no qualms whatsoever. "Gate of the Southern Cross, I open thee: Crux!"

There was a flash of silver and an old, snoring man appeared before them all, suspending in mid-air and quite oblivious to their presence.

"Crux, I'd like to know about the different types of multi-coloured magic that were seen during the Grand Magic Games." Lucy turned back to her friends feeling accomplished, but was faced with their expectant faces.

"...what does he do now?"

"Happy! He can still hear you! We just have to wait while he gathers information. In the meantime, where's Natsu?"

Gray looked up from his seat at the table in the guild. "I haven't seen him since the spell yesterday...he's probably off sleeping or eating or being useless somewhere."

"WHAT DID YOU SAY, GRAY!?"

"Speak of the devil," Lucy sighed, taking a seat with her drink as Erza nodding vigorously next to her while eating a slice of strawberry cheesecake. Natsu ran up to them, fists flaming, before he saw Lucy.

"LUCY! I almost forgot to tell you! I researched some weird magic stuff last night in the archives and found some of that rainbow magic from the spell."

Lucy nearly spat out her drink. "What!?"

Natsu nodded sagely. "There was one called 'Terri-'"

A sudden noise startled them all and Lucy ran up to Crux. "Have you got it?"

"Hmm...a type of magic called 'Territory'. It is a Caster magic and includes the manipulation of space. It is one of the Magics of the Yakuma Eighteen War Gods. In the Grand Magic Games, this magic was used by Minerva Orlando."

Erza gasped. "That's where I knew it from! I knew I remembered it from somewhere. I can't believe I didn't remember it earlier!"

"Oi! Is no one going to listen to me? I was going to say 'Territory' when that old man interrupted me!"

Lucy smiled at her supposed best friend. She could see _why_ they were best friends. "Thanks, Natsu."

Gray scoffed. "I can't believe you're smart enough to look in the archives. That's a first."

"What'd you say, stripper!?"

"You heard me, flame-brain!"

There was a dull clunk as both fell down after one blow from Erza, who stood intimidatingly over them, her eyes flashing dangerously. "It appears we need to pay a visit to Sabertooth."

* * *

**So that's chapter 5 :) Hope you liked it! For the next chapter, I may not be able to upload next weekend because I'm going away for a week but if it's not up next weekend, expect it sometime after the 1st October. Thanks again for reading this! Reviews are much appreciated ^_^**

**P.S. Some Sabertooth action for chapter 6! **


	6. Chapter 6

**Hello my lovely readers!**

**I am SO sorry that I haven't uploaded a new chapter earlier; I've been away, sick, drowned in homework...I swear the holidays are busier than the term. **

**Anyway, because you guys didn't get a chapter last weekend, I might be able to whip up another chapter sometime during the week before school starts again. **

**Here's chapter 6; enjoy!**

* * *

Last Chapter

_There was a dull clunk as both fell down after one blow from Erza, who stood intimidatingly over them, her eyes flashing dangerously. "It appears we need to pay a visit to Sabertooth."_

* * *

The day was perfect. Blue, cloudless skies, a gentle breeze rustling the trees. Nothing marred the perfection of the spring day. It was perfect.

_Too_ perfect.

A tall building stood on a rocky outcrop, mountains surrounding it. The intricate headquarters of Sabertooth appeared to consist of many buildings held together to form one giant, imposing structure. The guild members of Sabertooth sat in their guild hall, beer flowing freely and laughter echoing around the walls.

The guild doors of Sabertooth slammed open and each member immediately tensed. A black haired man looked towards the doors, his pale face serious and unreadable. A small group of people stood in the doorway, silhouetted against the sun. For a moment, there was silence; the calm before the storm.

"Who are you?" A blonde man came from inside a study at the back of the guild, his expression steely and guarded. The first figure stepped forward and the guild gasped collectively. For it was none other than Titania that stood in their doorway, followed by the one and only Salamander and Iron Gajeel. And in the back, Gray Fullbuster and Juvia Lockser stood, intimidating figures that radiated power. And Happy.

The blonde man's face erupted into a grin.

"Natsu-san!"

The Salamander stepped forward with a grin and a wave. "Yo, Sting!"

But before he could engage in conversation, an armoured arm barred his path. "Natsu, remember why we're here."

Then, Erza Scarlet turned to Sabertooth, "I'm afraid this is no social visit. We have some questions we'd like to ask you that concern one of your guild members."

Sting's cheerful grin turned into a frown. The master of Sabertooth gestured towards the mages of Fairy Tail. "Come on. Let's go into the study."

* * *

"Minerva?"

It was quite a tight fit in the study, with all the Fairy Tail mages, Sting, Rogue and the Exceeds. Sting and Rogue shared a look before they turned back to the Fairy Tail group.

"The thing is...we haven't seen her at all since the Grand Magic Games. She just vanished after your victory and we don't think she was even helping with the dragons."

Erza's gaze hardened. "So you have no affiliations with her whatsoever?"

"No." Sting turned his curious gaze to Erza. "Why are you asking about Minerva all of a sudden? Did something happen?"

Erza regarded the two men, as if trying to figure out the meaning behind Sting's words. "You both know Lucy Heartfilia, our celestial mage."

Both men nodded in surprise. They knew that Minerva had beaten her up pretty badly before but she had made a full recovery, if the way she fought the dragons was any indication.

"Lucy has been...cursed, you could say. A spell was placed upon her by Minerva, apparently, that steals an individual's memories. It's called-"

"_Rememoria_." Everyone looked at Rogue. His face was as unreadable as ever but there was a stiffness to his shoulders that made the Fairy Tail mages think he had encountered the spell before.

"Yes," Erza said warily. "Lucy cannot remember anything about Fairy Tail. Her last memory is of the night before she first met Natsu. We need to collect the memories from Minerva before the year is up and we thought you might know where she is."

"No…no trace of her. But we'll let you know if anything happens," Sting said. "Knowing Minerva…she would have made it a game. She loves to play on people's emotions…" Sting glanced at Lector for a second before continuing. "I think you should expect a message soon."

"A message?" Gajeel came out of the shadows. "What kinda message?"

"I don't know for sure, but it won't be pretty," Sting said grimly. "Keep in mind what Minerva's done to other members of your guild. It may give you a slight indication of what she's capable of."

* * *

"Everyone needs to have a partner at all times," Erza declared, staring at the mass of Fairy Tail mages in front of her. "We've talked to Sabertooth and they believe that Minerva may try and send a message to us in some way. You all know what she is capable of. Work in groups of at least two, if not more, to ensure safety."

The Fairy Tail mages split off one by one, muttering and concerned. Lucy and Mira were talking at the bar, so Erza made her way towards them.

"Erza! Are you okay? You look a bit peaky." Mira and Erza may have been childhood rivals but Erza couldn't have been more grateful to the white-haired mage as Mira placed a plate of strawberry cheesecake in front of her.

"I'm fine. I am simply worried about the type of 'message' Minerva will leave." Erza's face darkened considerably at the mention of the dark-haired mage. "I've found a temporary solution though, for your memories, Lucy."

Lucy perked up. She had to admit that Erza could be scary sometimes but she was a good friend that Lucy was glad to have. "A solution?"

"It's only temporary, and I'm not sure it'll work, but maybe everyone should tell you about your lost memories. It won't be the same as having them in your head but it's our best option at the moment, while we wait for the message anyway." Erza's smile brightened at Lucy's obvious enthusiasm.

"That sounds great, Erza! Can we start no-"

There was a smash as the front door of the guild opened violently. The normally rambunctious guild fell silent as Gray stood in the doorway, his face pale and afraid.

"Juvia's been attacked!"

The same thought ran through the mind of every terrified mage who had been to Sabertooth.

_The message_.

* * *

Juvia Lockser lay on a bed in the infirmary of Fairy Tail, wounds covering her entire body. Gray had taken the seat next to the bed and sat there in silence as Wendy worked her magic and the wounds started to heal. Erza, Lucy, Natsu, Mira, Gajeel and Levy stood around the bed of the water mage and Erza clutched a small piece of paper in her hand. Lucy felt a pang of guilt every time she saw Juvia, motionless on the bed. She didn't know where the paper had been found but judging from Erza's dark glare and Gray's shaking hands, it hadn't been pretty. She'd never seen Erza so angry in her life (well, she probably had. She just didn't remember much about it, thankfully). Lucy glanced at Gray. Her friend's face was stony and pale but she could see the fear in his eyes as he held Juvia's hand like a lifeline.

"Erza?" Mira prompted. "Is the...message...on the paper?"

Erza's hands tightened on the paper, as if she might tear it into pieces. A dark aura emitted from Titania and everyone at her in concern.

"Show them, Erza."

All eyes turned to the ice mage sitting beside Juvia's bed, who had not previously made a sound. Erza took a deep breath and handed the paper around.

_Well done, little Fairies. You've figured out the spell - I didn't think you had the brains. Now you have to find the memories. Really, it's as easy as 1, 2, 3. They're such lovely memories. I rather enjoyed looking at them. P__oor, little Lucy Heartfilia. So much pain. But I'll leave you to it. It can't be easy for such dim-witted creatures like you to find memories. When in doubt, start at the beginning._

_M_

"Start at the beginning? What does she mean by that?" Natsu wondered, his face scrunched up in confusion. Lucy found it kinda cute.

"I can try and decipher her words. I think some sentences have double meanings. She wouldn't just tell us where to find the memories; that ruins the point of the 'game'," Levy frowned at the paper in her hands.

"Yes, I think you're right," Erza said. "Lucy and I were discussing this before; we should have people tell her stories about her life at Fairy Tail while others decipher the message. It's not a permanent solution but it's the best we've got."

"Alright then," Mira said with a small smile on her lips. "Let's crack this code."

* * *

**So that's chapter 6. Tell me what you think! Apologies again for the late update! Thank you for the reviews and follows and favourites; they always make me smile and motivate me to write faster :) **

**Reviews are appreciated ^_^ **

***spoiler alert* (and on a completely unrelated note, did anyone else feel their heart was breaking when Gray saw Ultear in that episode two weeks ago? T_T)**


	7. Author's Note

**Author's Note**

Hello my lovely readers,

My most sincere apologies if you thought this is a chapter update!

First of all, I'd like to say a HUGE thank you to everyone who has pressed the favourite button or the follow button or reviewed or even just read my story. It honestly means a lot to me because this is my first fic and I have basically never had this many people read a story that I've written (seriously, you should just ask my friends; I was squealing when I got over 50 followers).

I'd also like to say the biggest THANK YOU to the one and only **XxForeverShinexX** for supporting me when I was still a misguided child on this site, giving me all her amazing feedback, editing my chapters and just generally being an awesome friend. Thanks bud!

At the moment, I haven't really got an idea of how many chapters there will be. I've thought out the ending and it'll need some tweaking but I've got the main idea at the moment.

Unfortunately, I'll be rather busy over the next three weeks as I have my exam block coming up. This means that this fic may have to take the backseat for a while. It'll only be for three weeks and I hope I'll have some time (or _make_ some time to escape from the craziness of exams) to write a chapter or two but this is just letting all you lovely people know that I may not get the chance to. However, I hope you all have a lovely October and that I can update (hopefully) very soon.

Mel xx

_P.S. It's Halloween month guys. **We're almost there.** *ominous jingle of bells*_

* * *

Here's a little snippet of the next chapter:

_"Lisanna?"_

_"Hm?"_

_"Is there...anything wrong?"_

_Lisanna looked briefly startled, before pasting a smile onto her face. "Nothing's wrong, Lucy. Why d'you ask?"_

_Lucy looked at the other woman thoughtfully. "You just seem a little preoccupied. Boy troubles?"_

_Lisanna had to stop herself from gasping out loud. How had she known? Her surprise must have shown on her face because Lucy chuckled a little._

_"It's Natsu isn't it? Why don't you tell him how you feel?"_

_Lisanna swallowed thickly and regarded the blonde in front of her. Poor Lucy...she really had no memory of Natsu's feelings, did she?_

_"Natsu...he and I have been friends for a long time. I know he doesn't like me that way. He loves another girl, but he's too dense to see it, and the girl isn't really...here. I'm pretty sure she loves him too. I just don't think it'd be fair if I made a move on him while she's gone."_

* * *

Until next time!


	8. Chapter 7

**I have returned from the horrors of yearly exams. But at least that means I'll have more time to write for this fic! **

**I'm sorry for the long wait (really, I know how horrible it is waiting for updates so SUPER big apology) but I wrote a bit of a longer chapter this time so maybe that makes up for it? I'm still planning on doing weekly updates but I might upload chapter 8 a little sooner than next weekend just because I've missed about three updates. **

**But thank you so much to those who have continued to follow and favourite my fic! It means a lot to me and I'll do my best to make this a good fic. **

**Here's chapter 7! Enjoy :)**

* * *

Last Chapter

Well done, little Fairies. You've figured out the spell - I didn't think you had the brains. Now you have to find the memories. Really, it's as easy as 1, 2, 3. They're such lovely memories. I rather enjoyed looking at them. Poor, little Lucy Heartfilia. So much pain. But I'll leave you to it. It can't be easy for such dim-witted creatures like you to find memories. When in doubt, start at the beginning.

M

_"Start at the beginning? What does she mean by that?" Natsu wondered, his face scrunched up in confusion. Lucy found it kinda cute. _

_"I can try and decipher her words. I think some sentences have double meanings. She wouldn't just tell us where to find the memories; that ruins the point of the 'game'," Levy frowned at the paper in her hands. _

_"Yes, I think you're right," Erza said. _

_"Lucy and I were discussing this before; we should have people tell her stories about her life at Fairy Tail while others decipher the message. It's not a permanent solution but it's the best we've got."_

_"Alright then," Mira said with a small smile on her lips. "Let's crack this code."_

* * *

Ever since Juvia had been attacked by Minerva, Levy and Mira had led a team of Fairy Tail's most ferocious bookworms and studious scholars to crack the code. But some of the message was so vague that they had a hard time. The message itself was not complicated but there were so many options and contributing factors that they didn't know where to start.

"The beginning? Does that mean the beginning of Lucy's life?"

"Schooling?"

"When she ran away?"

"When her mother died?"

Leaving it to the experts, Lucy wandered to the bar where Lisanna had replaced Mira as the barmaid.

"Hey Lucy, how's it going? Getting anywhere with the problem solving?"

Lucy only sighed in response. Lisanna gave her a cheeky grin and nonchalantly slid a strawberry milkshake across the counter with a wink. "How about we get Natsu and Happy over to tell you about joining Fairy Tail?"

Before Lucy could respond, Lisanna hollered across the guild hall, "Natsu! Happy! Get over here!"

Lucy could only sigh again. This was going to be a long day.

* * *

Lucy sighed contently as she lay back on the pillows of her bed after a long day of listening to her life story. It was weird, hearing other people talk about what she'd supposedly done when she had no memory of it at all. The stories didn't sound any more familiar but the warm feelings she got from hearing about them made her think that everyone was on the right track. Lisanna had helped her a lot today as well, and she was satisfied with her progress. She'd felt a bit light-headed at lunch so Lisanna had volunteered to come over to her apartment and keep her company in the form of a sleepover. However, said white-haired mage was rather quiet, as the two ate their dinner.

"Lisanna?"

"Hm?"

"Is there...anything wrong?"

Lisanna looked briefly startled, before pasting a smile onto her face. "Nothing's wrong, Lucy. Why d'you ask?"

Lucy looked at the other woman thoughtfully. "You just seem a little preoccupied. Boy troubles?"

Lisanna had to stop herself from gasping out loud. How had she known? Her surprise must have shown on her face because Lucy chuckled a little.

"It's Natsu isn't it? Why don't you tell him how you feel?"

Lisanna swallowed thickly and regarded the blonde in front of her. Poor Lucy...she really had no memory of Natsu's feelings, did she?

"Natsu...he and I have been friends for a long time. I know he doesn't like me that way. He loves another girl, but he's too dense to see it, and the girl isn't really…here. I'm pretty sure she loves him too. I just don't think it'd be fair if I made a move on him while she's gone."

There was a small silence as both girls continued to eat their dinner. Lucy raised her eyes up to Lisanna's. "I think that's really brave, Lisanna. Natsu's lucky to have you as his friend. I don't know if I'd be able to do the same if I were in that situation…"

Lisanna smiled wearily at the girl on the bed, her next words holding no bite and instead, held a gentle amusement. "I know you would, Lucy. Knowing you, you'd probably set them up on dates."

Lucy blushed at the compliment hidden in Lisanna's words. It felt strange, receiving a compliment about your personality when you had no memory of it.

Lisanna smiled softly at the blonde beside her as the two finished their dinner in a comfortable silence. The take-over mage knew the truth about the two oblivious friends and she wouldn't interfere. She would let him go and stay by his side as his best friend.

* * *

Natsu was confused.

Of course, Natsu was often confused. Sometimes, the others just used such long words and complicated language...like now, for instance. All this research and work that Levy and Mira were leading was so...complex. His brain hurt just thinking about it. Wait, could a brain hurt? He didn't know. Maybe he'd ask Lucy.

He felt a pang of fear and guilt as he thought of the amnesic blonde. Very deep down, he knew it wasn't really his fault but he couldn't help feeling guilty every time his best friend looked at everyone was confused eyes or waited for people to explain things that she would have known in an instant otherwise. Lucy had, once, told him not to feel guilty about every accident that happened because a lot of the time, he couldn't stop them.

But he could have prevented this.

He could have made sure she wasn't near anywhere near Motherglare and Rogue. What if he had gotten her to help move civilians to safer areas? This wouldn't be happening now. And what if she never remembered? But even as he wallowed in his guilt and fear, he could hear her scolding voice.

_"Natsu! Don't think like that. It's not your fault and no one blames you, so why should you? Everyone knows what happened as well as you do. Remember what you told me? Fairy Tail is family. Don't just protect your friends; believe them and believe _in_ them!"_

He didn't know where that memory had come from but he guessed it was from their talk after coming home from Tenroujima Island after the seven year gap. A brief image of the dark, looming dragon and their futile attempts flashed in his mind before he shook his head. He wouldn't sit around doing nothing when he could be helping.

He made his way back towards the guild hall. He ran through the doors and nearly ran back out at the number of books, thick volumes and fluttering pieces of paper that had turned the guild hall into a library. In the middle of it all, Levy and Mira commanded their troops with loud voices that could barely be heard over the rustle of pages and babble of conversation.

Before Natsu could run out, Mira spotted him and his blood ran cold. Forget what he said about helping. The expression on her face didn't bode well for him…

"Natsu! A dragon slayer, just what we need. Come over here!"

After many unconvincing excuses, Natsu's horrible acting skills and Mira's Satan Soul, Natsu sat down in a chair surrounded by books in what seemed like the nerd control centre.

Mira's sweet smile didn't fool him. "So, Natsu, tell us everything you know about dragon slayers. Now."

* * *

When Lucy arrived at the guild the next morning, Lisanna in tow, the sleepy girls were stunned by the sight that met them.

Natsu had dark circles under his eyes and had apparently slid off a chair and onto the ground, snoring, while Mira and Levy and the majority of the research unit were jumping up and down jubilantly in a rather extravagant manner.

Levy, spotting the two girls, ran over in excitement. "Lu-chan! We've solved it!"

Lucy was immediately alert. "What? That was so quick! What did you find?"

"We have a good idea about what the clue means and we got some information from Natsu about dragon slaying magic. We just need to confirm it with Wendy and Gajeel to make sure he's not just a weirdo!" Levy explained cheerfully. Lucy and Lisanna looked at each other and shrugged. Lucy threw her arms around Levy.

"Thanks Levy! This means a lot to me, really." Lucy didn't know how to convey her gratitude but Levy seemed to understand. The bluenette gave the blonde a wink and walked back into the fortress of books, where Wendy was sitting nervously and Gajeel was leaning on a stack of books that held even his weight. Natsu wailed pathetically as Erza burst into the room from the Fairy Tail Archives and grabbed the collar of his shirt, dragging him to a chair before unceremoniously dumping him onto the seat.

Lucy gave a small giggle. The guild was strange and insane but they were her family. She didn't need her memories to figure that out. Natsu suddenly looked over at her, his eyes wide. Wendy and Gajeel glanced at her too but before any of them could comment, Mira began her interrogation.

"Right, Wendy, Gajeel, we have some questions for you that Natsu has given us answers to but we need to clarify. Natsu's information is questionable at best so we thought it'd be safer to ask you both as well, seeing as you're all dragon slayers," Mira started cheerfully, oblivious to Natsu's offended glares.

"So, can you dragon slayers concentrate your magic so that it acts like an extension of yourself?" Levy asked professionally, glasses perched on the bridge of her nose. Gajeel stared blankly at her and Wendy looked slightly confused and apologetic. Gray, sitting at a nearby table without a shirt, rolled his eyes.

"They don't understand your fancy language, Levy." Then, to the dragon slayers, "What Levy means is, 'can your magic do stuff for you that would be, like, having an extra arm or something? Once, Natsu's fire turned into a sort of long arm of fire that saved him when he was falling into a canyon. Can your magic do stuff like that?"

Gajeel's eyebrows furrowed in concentration and Wendy looked at her hands, then at Carla, then back at her hands. There was a long silence.

"Well...once I gathered some wind in my hand and used it as a whip...does that count?" Wendy asked tentatively. Mira studiously wrote it down as Levy beamed.

"Yes! What about you, Gajeel?"

"It's a little hard for me to figure this out, shrimp…I can turn my arm into iron. Does that count?"

Mira and Levy glanced at each other and shrugged. "Okay."

There was the sound of whispering voices and hushed arguing in the circle of researchers before Levy and Mira turned to the rest of the guild. The two shared a look.

"We think there's a way that the dragon slayers can get Lucy's memories back," Levy began. "In one of the old books about dragons and dragon slayers in the Archives, it said that dragon slayers can learn to focus their magic into a sort of form and can use that as a weapon or defence."

"So, for Wendy, you used your whip of air as a weapon. Natsu used his arm of fire to save himself from falling into the canyon and Gajeel...does both, I guess," Mira explained. Levy nodded.

"But it also says that there is a more advanced concept that is similar to that where the dragon slayer concentrates their magic so that it is pure magic itself and not the dragon slayer's usual form of magic. It's used to handle more delicate matters, things such as…"

"Lucy's memories," Mira finished. There was a small moment of silence as the guild stared at the two mages in awe. Levy looked at the three dragon slayers.

"I'm assuming it would just be a sort of golden energy. It's quite difficult though, so we have to practise before going to collect Lucy's memories."

The guild stared on in silence before bursting into applause. Everyone cheered, with shouts of 'You're so smart, Mira-chan!', 'Levy, you're the best!' and 'Can I marry you?' However, Cana stopped everyone's celebration.

"Hang on. You said, 'before going to collect Lucy's memories. Does that mean you figured out where it is? You've solved the puzzle?"

"The beginning…of Lucy's journey to Fairy Tail." Everyone looked at Erza, who had, until then, stayed silent. "Hargeon Port."

* * *

In a small room in dark, towering castle, a woman looked into a large mirror. However, her face was not reflected. Inside, there were flickering images of what appeared to be a guild hall, where a blonde stood next to a white-haired woman and three figures were surrounded by books as a bluenette and another white-haired mage stood over them. The woman chuckled.

"Run and find them if you can, Fairies. Let's play a game of hide and seek."

* * *

**So chapter 7 is complete! What do you think is going to happen next? *heheheh I'm super excited to write this now***

**Reviews are appreciated ^_^**


	9. Chapter 8

**Hello again!**

**Second update of the weekend! *so proud* This is to make up for those three weeks of silence; hope you like it!**

* * *

Last Chapter

_In a small room in dark, towering castle, a woman looked into a large mirror. However, her face was not reflected. Inside, there were flickering images of what appeared to be a guild hall, where a blonde stood next to a white-haired woman and three figures were surrounded by books as a bluenette and another white-haired mage stood over them. The woman chuckled._

"_Run and find them if you can, Fairies. Let's play a game of hide and seek."_

* * *

Gray trudged along uncomfortably in his clothes, tugging at the collar of his shirt. He was half ready to take off his shirt but he couldn't with his hands full. And for a very stupid reason.

Natsu moaned miserably, his face green, as Gray dragged him along unceremoniously, oblivious to the strange stares they were attracting. Happy flew behind them cheerfully, munching on a fish, completely unaware that he could be helping Gray. It was a lovely day at Hargeon Port but Gray felt that couldn't really help on this mission, unless they got attacked by Minerva or anyone that was helping her.

Mira had told the three teams to split up and go to particular places where significant events took place and to rely on their dragon slayer's instincts but Gray highly doubted that he could rely on Natsu's instincts while Natsu was puking his guts out. Gray scowled at his friends and continued scouring the area for any clues. However, as he hadn't even been there when Lucy met Natsu, he couldn't do much.

"Natsu! You squinty eyed bastard, get up and walk yourself! What are we even meant to be looking for?" Gray complained, dumping the travel-sick boy onto a bench. "We got off the boat an hour ago! How are you still sick?"

"Ugh."

Gray rolled his eyes and scanned the area. There were some shops and restaurants around but nothing that stood out to him. Though Gray didn't know what he was actually looking for.

He sighed. "Why am I always stuck with this idiot?"

* * *

In the Worth Woodsea, Wendy walked alongside Erza and Carla. All three had decided that they would visit the places that Lucy went to during their adventures defeating the Oracion Seis but the problem was that the forest was so vast and untamed that they didn't really recognise half the places they went to.

Wendy sniffed the air a little. Not many scents lingered from their battles with Oracion Seis as it was almost eight years ago but the three recognised some of the magical signatures of their friends. Wendy could sense Natsu's dragon slayer magic in random places and Gray's ice magic but she had yet to sense some celestial magic. Carla had had a bit if a premonition and they knew to find a body of water but that could be a creek, lake or river anywhere in the Worth Woodsea. The group's initial determination was slowly fading, replaced by a heightened sense of frustration.

The three continued to walk under the searing sun until Wendy stopped them, her hand resting on Erza's arm.

"Wendy? Is something wrong?"

Wendy frowned and listened with her sensitive dragon slayer hearing. "Do you hear that?"

The three stilled. Slowly, they heard the sounds of trickling water.

* * *

Gajeel was not a happy chappy.

First of all, he'd been sent on some stupid mission to save bunny-girl's memories. Who cared about memories? Memories meant sentiment and sentiment was for losers anyway. Then, those stupid nerd researchers (though he'd never say that to Mira's face) had told him that he had to have a 'partner'. Pantherlily was his partner! But no, they had to send someone else along with the two of them. To be honest, the company wasn't too bad; Gajeel just felt like throwing a tantrum.

Juvia ambled alongside her friend, a little upset that she hadn't been allowed to go with Gray-sama. But, sadly, neither of them were dragon slayers so there was no point going with each other. Juvia thought about the blonde back in Magnolia. Lucy was honestly a kind friend and now that Juvia knew for certain that she did not have feelings for her Gray-sama and probably had feelings for a certain pink-haired dragon slayer, Juvia would do her best to help her friend.

The trio walked through the vegetation on the island of Tenroujima. The three had been a little nervous to, once again, step foot on the island after the incident with the seven years but Juvia had fearlessly charged ahead for the sake of her friend, leaving Lily and Gajeel with no choice but to follow her.

The three reached an area where there were eight cave openings. "The routes from the exam," Juvia realised, as they peered into the caves. "Which did Lucy take?"

Gajeel sniffed experimentally. "Can't smell her anymore. Too long ago. The whole place just smells funny. It can't have been Route E though. Salamander took that coz he though Titania was there."

Lily sighed. "We have to look through the rest of them then?"

Juvia nodded. "When in doubt, start from the top."

* * *

_Lucy sprinted faster. Explosions tore holes in the ground around her but she dodged them and continued running. The city buildings crumbed around her. She didn't know where she was running to but she knew she had to get there fast. Why? She had no clue. _

_There was a colossal roar as she screeched to a stop. She heard a familiar voice scream her name but before she could figure out who it was, a giant claw slammed her through the walls of a building. _

_Lucy felt strange. She knew she was in pain and couldn't move a muscle but she didn't feel like she was in her body and she kept blacking out. After what seemed like hours but could have been minutes, a young man with pink hair picked his way through the rubble towards her. He shouted her name but she couldn't recognise him. He glanced down at his hand and for the first time, Lucy realised she was holding a brown notebook. The man took it from her hands before she could say anything and the world dissolved into darkness._

_When Lucy woke again, a dark figure loomed over her. She knew, for some strange reason, that this person was not here with good intentions. The woman gave her a humourless smile and raised her gloved hands, chanting in another language, as a sharp light burned Lucy's eyes, searing into her brain. She felt a scream leave her mouth as the pain intensified to a torturous level and she felt like every part of her was being unmade._

Lucy woke with a jerk. It was that dream again. She'd started having the dream after the little teams of dragon slayers had left but she hadn't worried about it until she got the same dream two nights in a row. This was the third night she had had the same dream and she knew she ought to consult Mira or Levy about it but she was still trying to decipher it herself. However, every time she tried to focus on the details, the dream would trickle away and leave her with nothing but a blank mind. She thought the dream was important but she couldn't be sure without knowing all the details.

There was a man in there who had….strange coloured hair. Green? Purple? Pink? Rainbow? Who knew? Lucy certainly didn't and she was feeling increasingly frustrated at her lost memories.

The blonde mage made her way to the guild after a quick bath and found the guild busy as usual. Mira had returned as the barmaid though Lisanna was still helping out. Levy and her nerdy troops had disbanded for now so Levy was sitting alone on a bench, going through thick volumes with a vicious intensity, aided by her Gale-Force reading glasses.

Lucy gave her blue haired friend a cheerful wave before heading to the bar, where Lisanna already had a strawberry milkshake prepared for her.

"Thanks, Lisanna!"

The three girls chatted amicably with one another as the sun rose higher in the sky. Lucy spent the rest of the day in a similar fashion until the guild doors opened slowly and a silhouette stood against the light of the setting sun. Mira stopped her conversation to greet the figure, who hadn't moved from his spot at the doorway.

"Hello! Can I help you?"

* * *

Gray, Natsu and Happy had wandered around for three days and hadn't found any sign of Lucy's memories. They assumed that it would be emitting faint traces of Lucy's magic so the trio were looking in every nook and cranny of Hargeon Port. The sun rose high in the deep blue sky as the three collapsed on a bench near a restaurant. Gray peered around.

"Hey…this is where we were before, at the beginning. We've already looked here."

Natsu groaned in response, face down on the bench. "I'm hungry…let's eat first!"

Gray waited for Happy's, "Aye!" but it never came. The ice mage looked at the blue cat in confusion. "Happy?"

Happy's eyes were wide as he looked around him. His eyes landed on the name of the restaurant they were sitting next to. And he _freaked_.

"NATSU! GRAY! Natsu, Natsu, Natsu!" Happy then proceeded to fly rapidly in front of their faces, as if it would make them understand the mystery that was his mind. "IT'S THIS PLACE!"

"Huh?" Natsu peered at the restaurant. "What is it?"

"They have _really_ good fish, Natsu! Remember when we came here with Lucy when we first met her and I ordered ten plates of fish then got five more because I realised she was paying?" Happy was flying increasingly faster in his excitement. Natsu's eyes lit up.

"Oh yeah! This place has really good food!"

Gray sighed.

Then he stiffened. Lucy?

"Wait, Happy! Did you just say you went here with Lucy?"

The cat nodded obliviously. Gray gave a cry of frustration. "You couldn't have said that earlier!?"

"Why? Is it important?"

Gray almost cried. "We're here looking for Lucy's memories, in case you forgot! Levy said that her memories are probably hidden in places she's been. The memories could be in that restaurant!"

A look of comprehension dawned on the cat's face. "Oh! I thought we were doing that on day one, then finding good food for the rest of the trip!"

Gray banged his forehead on a brick wall.

Natsu bolted up from his position on the bench. "Oh! We're looking for Lucy's memories in places she's been! It could be in that restaurant!"

Gray cried.

* * *

The three females had been walking around the Worth Woodsea for almost four days. They'd found multiple streams but none of them had been the ones that Angel and Lucy had fought at. They were growing rather depressed at their lack of progress but Erza told the two entertaining stories every night of the other members of Fairy Tail and the guild's adventures, before Wendy and Carla had joined. Apparently, Erza had an evil, teasing side. Wendy and Carla couldn't say they were surprised.

The three had grown quite comfortable around each other and had reached another waterfall when Erza stopped, a strange expression on her face.

"Erza-san?"

"We're close."

The other two blinked and followed Erza, who waded into the water until she reached the waterfall. Wendy and Carla hovered next to her, Carla's pure white wings flapping gently. Erza's eyes followed the plummeting water to the very top of the waterfall.

"Lucy's magical presence is stronger here than in other places. Still weak, but more traceable. We'll have to investigate at the top. Requip: Black Wing Armour!"

The trio flew to the top with a rush of air and landed on the banks of a stream. Lucy's faint magical signature surrounded them. Wendy looked around, intrigued.

"What do we do now?"

Erza requipped back into her regular armour. "We find Lucy's memories. And we don't leave until we find them."

* * *

"Hmph."

Gajeel sat in a corner of the cave, arms crossed and scowling expression intact. Juvia only rolled her eyes at the dragon slayer and turned to Lily, who was shaking in the corner of the cave, paws covering his ears. Another flash of lightning tore through the darkness and rain outside the cave. Lily closed his eyes in anticipation, which didn't silence his whimper as the thunder rumbled intimidatingly. Juvia scowled at her companions.

"Gajeel-kun! We must move soon. We have spent three days in this cave and haven't even gotten to Route C! We have only explored two of the routes! Juvia would like to move on to help Lucy. These things need to happen quickly, Gajeel-kun, and we never used to be affected by trivial things like the weather."

Gajeel's scowl intensified to impossibly high levels. "We can't move coz Lily's scared of the thunder and we're not leaving him behind. Deal with it, Lockser!"

Juvia's glare rivalled that of Erza's. "We leave in ten minutes."

Gajeel tried not to look intimidated and failed and fifteen minutes later, they were well on their way exploring Route C. The three tensed as the route opened up into a large cavern.  
"This is Lucy's…magical signature…" Juvia stared at the cavern in astonishment. Gajeel grunted.

"Let's get to work finding those damn memories then."

* * *

The figure in the doorway of the guild walked forwards slowly, head bowed slightly. He wore a large coat over his shoulders despite the heat and had strange earphones on, with a lightning shaped scar running down the length of his face. Lucy had no idea who he was but everyone else in the guild looked at the figure in astonishment. Mira's eyes widened.

"Laxus?"

* * *

**So chapter 8 is done! **

**You guys have no idea how excited I was to write that last little section ^_^ Yay, Laxus! I'd appreciate any reviews; let me know if the changing scenes and stuff was confusing and I'll keep your feedback in mind for next chapter. **

**P.S. Next chapter may be sometime during the week or on the weekend...depends on the workload at school! But if I don't post chapter 9 during the week, it'll probably be back to weekly updates. **


	10. Chapter 9

**Hi everyone!**

**Thank you for all your reviews! They mean a lot to me and motivated me to write faster :) This chapter is dedicated to the awesome XxForeverShinexX for always helping me out and giving me sound advice. Even when it doesn't seem like it, I really appreciate it!**

**So here's chapter 9; enjoy!**

* * *

Last Chapter

_The figure in the doorway of the guild walked forwards slowly, head bowed slightly. He wore a large coat over his shoulders despite the heat and had strange earphones on, with a lightning shaped scar running down the length of his face. Lucy had no idea who he was but everyone else in the guild looked at the figure in astonishment. Mira's eyes widened. _

_"Laxus?"_

* * *

"I heard what was going on so I swung by to give blondie here a hand," Laxus explained, ignoring the astonished looks that were being thrown his way. He glanced at Mira quickly before looking back to Lucy. "But it sounds like you don't remember me...which might be good thing, to be honest. My name's Laxus Dreyar."

Lucy's eyes were already wide as she stared at the way Mira and Laxus were acting around each other but as soon as she heard 'Dreyar', she choked on her milkshake.

"Dreyar!? You…Master…"

"Grandson."

Lucy blinked at him a little. She could sort of see the family resemblance…she didn't feel any emotions really surface at his name so she assumed they hadn't known each other well before. Well, time to change that, if she was going to be the matchmaker.

Lucy stuck her hand out. "I'm Lucy. Pleased to meet you!"

Laxus looked a little bemused but shook her hand regardless. Lucy tried not to squeak. His hand could probably cover both her hands together! Laxus must have sensed her nervousness because he grinned at her a little. "So, blondie-"

"You're blond too!"

Laxus ignored her. "Where should I start looking?"

The three women looked at him blankly. Lisanna broke the silence. "Looking for what?"

Laxus raised an eyebrow. "The memories? I'm a dragon slayer too, you know."

Lucy actually spat out her milkshake this time.

While Lisanna forcefully thumped her on the back, Lucy choked out, "A dragon slayer? A dragon slayer!? Why am I in a guild of strange people? Why are there so many dragon slayers and how did we get so many? How are you a dragon slayer anyway? You're Master's grandson!"

Laxus waited for her to finish. "Lacrima. I'm second generation. Natsu, Gajeel and Wendy are first generation. Although," he turned to Mira. "Will the memory thing work if I'm a second generation?"

Mira glanced at Levy. "It doesn't specify, probably because second generation dragon slayers didn't exist at the time the book was written. We can send you on a mission and see if it works."

"Thanks, Mira," Laxus said, glancing at her. Lucy and Levy shared a look and giggled as a light blush graced Mira's cheeks. Lucy jerked her head a little and Levy smirked.

"Okay, well, Lucy and I are gonna go and check out this new book that came out today. See you both later!" The bluenette dragged the blonde with her, ignoring Mira's weak protests as they gave the couple some time alone.

* * *

"Gosh, have they always been like that?" Lucy pondered, scanning her eyes along shelves of books. The two friends were in a small bookshop near the guild where, apparently, they always went. "The sexual tension was killing me!"

Levy giggled. "Ah, well...Laxus wasn't always the good guy. He was excommunicated from the guild actually."

"What!?" Lucy's wide eyes peered at Levy over a thick novel. "What did he do?"  
"Well..." Levy sighed. "It's a bit of a long story but basically he broke one of the unofficial rules of the guild and tried to eliminate everyone he thought was 'weak' so he could have the perfect guild."

"Wow...I never would've thought he would do that, just from meeting him before!" Lucy placed the book back on the shelf. "But how could he create a perfect guild? He's not the master. He's powerful, yes, but surely there are other candidates for guild master once Master Makarov retires?"

Levy blinked at her. "Laxus is the Master's grandson so people just assume he'll become the next Master."

Lucy hummed in response. "I guess. It's still hard to believe he's Master's grandson. I didn't even realise when he walked in. I mean…wow, his grandson? I guess they do sort of look similar…" Lucy said thoughtfully before she brightened. "Hey, seeing as Mira seems to like matchmaking people, we can do it for her and Laxus this time!"

"Yes!" Levy cheered, before frowning. "How did you know that Mira's the unofficial Fairy Tail matchmaker? I doubt she told you herself…"

"Well, judging by her attempts to get you and Gajeel together…" Lucy smirked as she let the sentence hang, a wide grin adorning her face as she saw the blush that immediately reddened Levy's cheeks. "Bingo! So, what's the story between you and metal-face?"

"Lu-chan! Don't call him that…" Levy said before realising what she had said in his defence. "Oh! I mean, um, nothing really, we're…friends?"

"You don't sound sure," Lucy teased, as they walked out of the bookshop and into a clothing shop. Lucy expertly flicked through the clothes as Levy sat on a chair, staring reproachfully at her friend.

"We're friends! Nothing more, nothing less," Levy said with conviction, raising her head defiantly. Lucy laughed at her friend.

"Oh, Levy-chan. I was just teasing! But it's funny seeing you get so riled up about it," Lucy said with a wink.

The two girls linked arms and walked out of the shopping mall, chatting all the way, unaware of the green-haired woman holding a floating communication lacrima that showed every action of the two girls to a woman that was hidden behind the grey, stone walls of a castle in the middle of nowhere.

The dark haired woman laughed as she peered at the images in the lacrima. Her purple hair was elegantly styled and her dress spoke of nobility and wealth.

"Mikino."

"Ma'am?"

"Send Fairy Tail a little message."

"Yes, ma'am. What would you like it to say?"

There was a slight pause as the dark haired woman gave a mirthless smile. "Tell them that it's time to play."

* * *

It had been almost two weeks since the dragon slayers had left with their teams. Laxus had obviously left four days later than the others and as the Raijinshu Tribe had eagerly accompanied him, the guild was quieter than ever. Even to Lucy, the guild hall seemed depressingly empty without its usual rowdy guild members and their brawls.

"I don't even know what to do anymore…the waiting is killing me," Lucy sighed, playing with the straw of her milkshake as Mira laughed at her. There was a light _thump_ next to her and she glanced over to see a brunette wearing a blue bikini top with brown pants. The woman grinned at her, clutching a large mug of beer.

"Lucy! Feels like we haven't talked in ages...hope your amnesia isn't making life too difficult," she said, taking a swig of beer. Lucy looked at her curiously.

"You're...Cana, right?"

"Yeah. Feels weird that you don't remember us. Oh well, Natsu will save you. He always does," Cana replied with a wink.

Luc blushed before Cana's words sunk in. _Natsu will save you. He always does._ "Was I really weak? As a mage?"

Cana looked at Lucy in surprise. "God, no. You were awesome. People always thinking Celestial Spirit magic makes the mage weak but you were probably one of the most powerful Celestial Spirit mages. You always fought with your spirits, instead of just using them. I remember on Tenrou Island…I couldn't have gotten to Mavis' grave without you."

Lucy felt warm as Cana spoke but still felt a little like a damsel in distress. Cana glanced at her.

"Don't worry, Lucy. I know this is hard but you'll get through it. You always do. You're the glue that holds your team together."

Lucy gave the brunette a shaky smile before the guild doors banged open. The two women looked up to find Erza, Wendy and Carla standing in the doorway, looking rather pleased with themselves.

"Erza! Wendy! Carla! You're back!" Lucy cried, getting up excitedly. Mira smiled at the three mages.

"Welcome back! Did everything go okay?"

The trio walked into the guild and towards the table near the bar. "It went well. Almost everything went according to plan. We found her memories hidden amongst the rocks in the stream where Lucy fought Angel. There was a seal on the memories but Wendy managed to break through it," Erza reported, smiling at the young dragon slayer.

"Wow, nice one, Wendy!" Lucy cheered, feeling immensely grateful to her friends.

Wendy blushed. "It wasn't much, really. I don't even know how I did it. I just sort of pushed through it with my dragon slaying magic in that concentrated form and then your memories were there. I didn't look," Wendy assured hurriedly. "I transferred them to a lacrima that can store magical energy."

"Way to go, Wendy!" Cana grinned, taking another swig of beer. "You beat the boys!"

"It seemed a little _too_ easy," Carla frowned, staring thoughtfully at the other mages. Levy nodded.

"Yes, but we're not going to complain. We'll see what's going on with everyone else before making any decisions."

Erza looked around the guild. "Have you heard from the other two?"

"Actually, it's other _three_ now," Mira smiled, cleaning a glass.

"Three?"

Mira's smile broadened. "Laxus came."

"WHAT?" Three voices exclaimed simultaneously.

"Laxus-san?"

"That lightning dragon slayer? Hmph! He is such a bad influence."

"Why did he come?"

"Well, he said he heard about Lucy's predicament and wanted to help," Levy replied, walking up to the bar and joining the conversation. The three greeted her and she continued. "So we sent him on the last mission that we were originally planning to give to the first group that returned; getting Lucy's memories about the Grand Magic Games. We thought it'd be the Games and not the whole thing with Oracion Seis Reborn because that's when Minerva first came into the picture."

"True. Oh yeah, how did you figure out there were four missions?" Cana asked with a frown. Levy looked a little sheepish.

"We didn't. But we didn't want to say that and bring everyone's hopes down so gave each group a couple of destinations to look at, where key events took place. That might be why the others are having a harder time."

"Yes. Oh, I have the lacrima here. Where shall I put it?" Erza asked. There was a golden glow as the lacrima appeared from her armoury.

"Actually, I think it might be safer leaving it inside your armoury, Erza," Mira said thoughtfully. "It could get smashed if left out here."

"Agreed." Lucy only caught a glimpse of shimmering golden light before it vanished safely back into Erza's armoury.

The guild doors slammed open again and in walked a dripping Gajeel, anxious Lily and irate Juvia.

"Juvia! What happened?" Mira asked in concern as she took in their appearances.

"Juvia is sick of Gajeel-kun behaving like a child! He almost broke the lacrima!" Juvia cried, sounding rather distraught.

"Calm down, Lockser, I didn't break the damn thing, okay?" Gajeel scowled.

Juvia sniffed and ignored him. "Mira-san, Levy-san, here is the lacrima."

Juvia reached into her midsection as her body dissolved briefly into water before she drew out a small lacrima almost identical to the one in Erza's armoury and placed it on the table.

"Oh, thanks, Juvia!" Mira beamed. "We thought that maybe we should keep them all in-"

Another deafening bang echoed through the guild hall and the Fairy Tail mages all looked up. Gray and Natsu's voices increased in volume as they argued their way into the guild, Happy flying nonchalantly behind them.

"You could have broken it!"

"But I didn't! As if I'd stuff up Lucy's memories! If anything, you freezing the damn lacrima could have made it worse!"

"Me? That's rich coming from you! If I hadn't frozen it, it would've broken when you dropped it on the train!"

"I couldn't control that! I felt sick and it was in my jacket and it just rolled out!"

"_Are you two fighting?_"

The two mages looked up, saw Erza's thunderous face and immediately linked arms.

"No, ma'am!"

"We're best friends, Erza!"

"Aye!"

Lucy sighed frowned at the lacrima that Gray placed on the table. "Uh…will it still work if it's frozen?"

Natsu walked over. "I'll fix it!" And without warning, he blew flames on it.

"KYAAAH!" Lucy kicked him in the stomach and screeched as the lacrima steamed. "That could have ruined the lacrima!"

"Sorry, Luce," Natsu rubbed the back of his neck. "But it seems okay now!"

All the women sighed.

As Erza took the lacrimas, Natsu grinned excitedly. "So, Mira, Levy, can I go find the rest of Lucy's memories now?"

Mira smiled apologetically at him. "Actually, Natsu, someone's already gone to get them."

"Huh? Who!?"

"Me, idiot, and I beat you all too."

Everyone whirled around. "Laxus!?"

A lacrima was placed forcefully on the table and the lightning mage looked coolly at his guild mates. "What?"

There was a small silence. Then, Levy spoke. "Alright! Now we can start figuring out how to transfer Lucy's memories into her brain!"

Before Levy could elaborate, a piece of paper taped to a large book shimmered into existence right in front of the group. The novel was thick and old and an ancient script adorned the front cover.

Lucy gasped. "What the…"

"Don't touch it yet," Erza instructed, her eyes wary and alert. "It could contain a curse of some sort."

"What does the note say?" Wendy asked, peering curiously at the paper only to be pulled back by Carla. "Carla!"

"I have a bad feeling about this, Wendy," Carla said, her voice shaky. Mira and Erza glanced at one another as Levy examined the writing.

"It says…_'Time to play, Fairies. Who is the lamb being led to the slaughterhouse? The game has only just begun.'_"

* * *

**And there's chapter 9! I hope you all enjoyed it; tell me what you think. Reviews are, as always, appreciated. **

**Also, more information about the OC 'Mikino' will be revealed next week! I wasn't sure where Erza's weapons go when she's not using them so I just said 'armoury' because that's sort of what it is.**

**Until next week!**


	11. Chapter 10

**Hello my lovely readers!**

**Wow, thank you all so much for the reviews! I still get excited every time I get one ^_^ Here's a nice action-packed chapter! **

**Also, please excuse my slightly crappy writing this week; I've been sick the past week and fight scenes have never been my forte so I hope it's okay!**

* * *

Last Chapter

_Before Levy could elaborate, a piece of paper taped to a large book shimmered into existence right in front of the group. The novel was thick and old and an ancient script adorned the front cover. _

_Lucy gasped. "What the…"_

"_Don't touch it yet," Erza instructed, her eyes wary and alert. "It could contain a curse of some sort."_

"_What does the note say?" Wendy asked, peering curiously at the paper only to be pulled back by Carla. "Carla!"_

"_I have a bad feeling about this, Wendy," Carla said, her voice shaky. Mira and Erza glanced at one another as Levy examined the writing._

"_It says…'Time to play, Fairies. Who is the lamb being led to the slaughterhouse? The game has only just begun.'"_

* * *

"It has to be a trap; it indirectly tells us how to return the memories!"

"How could it be a trap? Just give them back to Luce!"

"They could do something wacko to her!"

"She's already wacko!"

"Hey!"

"Quiet!"

The squabbling group silenced as Erza's stormy eyes glanced at each of them. Lucy cowered under her gaze, still staring at the book in apprehension. Regardless of what Levy's investigation had said, she didn't trust it not to contain a curse or something and start shooting laser beams at them. The redhead took the book from Levy's arms, her stare fierce and determined.

"We will follow the book."

"What!?"

"Erza, it's a trap!"

"See? Even Erza agrees!"  
"Quiet! The only reason we are following its instructions are because it is our only clue at the moment," Erza declared. "We must all be on our guard. Do _not_ go anywhere unaccompanied. Groups of three at least."

Natsu squinted at the book in her hand. "Where exactly are we following the book?"

"Idiot! Didn't you listen before?"

"What'd you call me, icicle?"

"You heard me, flame-face!"

"Shut it!"

Erza glared at the two before nodding gratefully in Lucy's direction. "Alright. Gajeel, Levy, Lily, Juvia; you're group one. Natsu, Lucy, Happy, Gray; group two. Wendy, Mira, Carla and myself will be group three. Laxus, you and the Raijinshu can be group four."

"As for the direction, Natsu…" Levy gestured at the book's title, _Venti Incantamentum Scriptum_. "The title says it all."

Natsu blinked.

Levy sighed. "Venti! Roman gods of the winds. They each had a cardinal direction so we should travel east, west, north and south. This book is written in an ancient language called Latin."

"Yes." Erza nodded approvingly. "Are there any other clues?"

"Hm…I believe there are some shrines at the furthest point of each direction in Fiore. They're our best bet."

Erza nodded. "We depart tomorrow morning."

* * *

"Help...get me...off…"

"Stop whining, flamebrain! We're almost there!"

Lucy sighed as the two boys bickered. Again. They had been arguing all morning, when Natsu wasn't too busy puking his guts out, and Lucy couldn't wait to get off the carriage so they could just go to the shrine and ask whatever guardian lived there for a way to get her memories back. Happy was happily eating fish in the corner when the carriage came to an abrupt halt.

"This is as far as I take you!"

"Thank you!" Lucy climbed out with Happy as Gray lugged Natsu out of the carriage. Lucy waved as the farmer continued on his journey and the four stared at the path in the forest that faced them.

"Let's go," Gray said, with a wary glance at the dark trees. The group continued their journey west, past towering waterfalls and caves of stalagmites and stalactites until they stopped in front of a small shrine.

"Is this it?" Happy flew towards the shrine, peering inside it curiously. "It's so small."

The shrine was not what Lucy was expecting. It was a lot smaller than she imagined, with a domed ceiling and pillars instead of walls supporting it. It was completely round and inside, there was a small statue of the god Favonius perched on a block of stone. A small fire burnt in a hole in the slab of stone and Lucy felt a strange magical presence as soon as she entered.

"Don't let your guard down," Gray warned, walking inside the shrine. Lucy kept her hand on her keys, curious eyes exploring the building.

"Huh?" Natsu walked towards the stone statue and picked up a note. "Hey, check this out."

"What's it say?" Lucy made her way to the statue, hands tightening on her whip.

"Looks like they're...directions."

* * *

"We've finally arrived! I wonder how the others are doing," Lucy sighed as they reached the place they had been directed to. Night had fallen so they couldn't do much else. She sat down next to the fire Natsu had made when a voice made her jump.

"Lucy-san?"

"Wendy!? What are you doing here?" Lucy looked at the dragon slayer in shock as the rest of her group came into view. "I thought you went to the north!"

"We were told to come here from a set of instructions," Mira replied, taking a seat next to Lucy and warming her hands by the fire. "I'm not sure what Minerva's playing at."

A small laugh came from the forest next to them.

"Who's there?" Erza said warily, sword drawn. A figure stepped out from the shadows.

"Well done, Fairies. I didn't think you'd get this far."

* * *

"Why'd we get sent to the same place?" Laxus frowned as he and Gajeel glared at each other.

"It's probably a trap, stupid."

"Don't talk to Laxus that way!"  
"Everyone, be quiet!"

The rest of the group turned to look at Levy, who was facing the trees. "I think there's someone there…"

"If you think there's someone there, don't go yelling about, shrimp!"  
"Don't call me shrimp!"

A green-haired woman stepped out from behind a tree. "Oh, did I interrupt a lovers' quarrel?"

* * *

"It's a trap!" Erza shouted as Minerva sent explosions in their direction. The group scattered as bits of wood and fire rained upon them before Erza, Natsu and Gray charged simultaneously. Minerva smirked at them.

"Watch out!"

Wendy's cry came too late. In a split second, Gray had replaced Minerva and Erza and Natsu, unable to stop in time, crashed into him.

"Gray!"

A cry of pain sounded over the explosion of attacks that had occurred and Minerva gave a humourless laugh.

"You're all too predictable!" She gave Lucy a Cheshire-cat grin. "Time for the main event."

"Roar of the Sky Dragon!"

Wendy's attack shot straight at Minerva but Minerva simply swapped places with Carla in a flash.

"Carla!"

The Exceed's voice was lost as Minerva aimed a volley of explosions towards Lucy, Wendy, Mira and Happy. The four flew backwards with a loud crash.

"No! Roar of the Fire Dragon!"

Minerva waved her hand and the heat of Natsu's attack was deflected as he flew into the forest with a sickening crack. She walked slowly to where Mira lay.

"Haven't you done enough, Minerva? You've already stolen Lucy's memories; there's no need to do anything else!"

Minerva sneered at Mira. "I was humiliated. In front of all of Fiore, I was humiliated. This is simply a small taste of what is to come. Don't think that your little _heart-wrenching_ speech will do anything to change that!"

"So this is all just to, what, make a statement?" Lucy shot at her, wincing as pain flared in her arm. Minerva scoffed.

"It's too complex for you dull creatures to understand." She placed a foot on Lucy's arm and smiled in satisfaction as the blonde cried, tears of pain welling in her eyes.

Mira sighed, a look of grim determination in her eyes. "So be it. Satan Soul!"

Lucy gasped as the pain was relieved and watched with wide eyes as the two mages fought, darting about so quickly that she could barely follow them with her eyes. From her right, a red blur charged into the battle.

"Dance, my blades!"

"Evil Explosion!"

Minerva deflected the spells but flew back from their force. Erza flew forward.

"Blumenblatt!"

Minerva smirked and dodged each sword. Before Erza could react, Minerva threw a punch into stomach and the redhead flew backwards into the trees.

"Erza!"

Mira snarled at Minerva and flew forwards with vicious intensity until Minerva appeared behind her. Mira gasped as Minerva's hand grasped her neck.

"You may have her memories but what will happen to your precious dragon slayers when they give them back? Maybe they'll…explode?" Minerva cackled as Mira's eyes widened. The dark-haired mage's hands moved to create a strange symbol that burnt a dark purple before it imprinted itself on Mira's body.

Mira's scream pierced the night.

* * *

"Dammit, who is this chick?" Gajeel dodged his own iron dragon breath as Laxus and the Raijinshu performed a simultaneous attack that was also reflected back.

Levy and Lily observed from the sidelines but the mages were all moving too quickly for her to notice much. The woman glanced at her and the smile she gave sent chills down Levy's spine. The woman vanished.

"Wind Tornado."

Her unseen attack encompassed the entire group and all Levy could hear was her own screams. The pain twisted felt like knives to her skin and her throat felt raw from screaming. Finally, she felt the pain stop and she fell to the ground. For some strange reason, she could still hear screams.

A hand grasped her shirt and yanked her into an upright position.

"You know what to do, don't you, _shrimp_?" The voice was soft, mocking, and she felt indignation well up inside of her at the name but she couldn't muster enough energy to reply.

"You know what the dragon slayers have to do…you've read it all before." Realisation dawned.

"Maybe consult your little demon friend before you do anything though. I'm sure she has valuable information. Sweet dreams."

Levy felt the woman's other hand move, a bright green light and then pain so intense she couldn't even think.

She must've blacked out because when she regained consciousness, she was lying on the floor and she couldn't move a single muscle. But, vaguely, she heard a familiar dragon slayer.

"Levy!"

* * *

**Let me know what you think!**

**Also, a brief summary on my OC:**

_**Name: Mikino Takara**_

_**Magic: Elemental magic (control over the four elements), Illusion magic**_

_**Age: 22**_

_**Hair colour: Forest green**_

_**Eye colour: Dark blue**_

_**Relatives: Parents (deceased), younger sister (missing)**_

_**Job Status: Freelance mage**_

_**Relationship with Minerva: Mikino currently works Minerva and has previously worked random jobs for other dark mages/wealthy people. Mikino has agreed to work for Minerva for (currently) unknown reasons. **_

**Until next time :)**


	12. Chapter 11

**Hello friends!**

**Here's chapter 11! I hope you like it :) **

* * *

Last Chapter

_Levy felt the woman's other hand move, a bright green light and then pain so intense she couldn't even think. _

_She must've blacked out because when she regained consciousness, she was lying on the floor and she couldn't move a single muscle. But, vaguely, she heard a familiar dragon slayer. _

"_Levy!"_

* * *

"What do you mean, there's a spell on them?"

"She means there's a spell on them that's stopping them from waking up, metal-face!"

"You wanna go?"

"I'm gonna beat your stupid face into the ground!"

"Stop it! Stop fighting!"

The two dragon slayers turned to look at Lucy, her face tear-stained as she sat in between the beds where Mira and Levy lay, unmoving. Laxus paced the floor behind them while Elfman and Lisanna kept a silent vigil next to Mira's still form. Erza's face was expressionless as she delivered the long-awaited diagnosis of their friends' conditions.

Gajeel scowled at the room's occupants before sweeping out the door, a storm of dark energy following him. Juvia made to follow but Gray grabbed her hand.

"Leave him be. He just needs to cool off."

Erza appeared oblivious to Juvia's flustered expression and anything around her as she gazed at her unconscious friends. Lucy knew that the redheaded mage blamed herself for allowing everyone to following the book's instructions, even if it wasn't her fault, and the blonde was grateful to Gray for not blaming the S-class mage for ignoring his warnings.

Lucy stared forlornly at Levy's pale face. If there was anyone at blame, it was her. She felt that this was a familiar feeling, even though she didn't remember it, which made her feel even worse.

Her friends were hurt because of her and her memories. Why couldn't she just remember? Now two of her friends lay unconscious in the infirmary. Sweet, kind Mira, always willing to lend a hand, comfort others and plant seeds of romance within the guild. Cheerful, intelligent Levy, with her infectious love of books and willing friendship. No one, not even Wendy, had managed to awaken the two mages. According to the sky dragon slayer, there was some sort of complicated spell on them that prevented them from waking regardless of physical condition and injuries but this time, their best researchers had become the victims.

Freed, who was, after all, a rune mage, had attempted to undo the spell on the two but even his skill had been bested by the mysterious enchantment. Now, they could only wait for Porlyusica.

The clock ticked and the room's occupants slowly left, to escape the suffocating infirmary or to attempt to sleep. Lucy knew that she would simply stare into space if she even tried to sleep so she remained by her friends' sides and tried to write more of her novel. She could barely concentrate but every time she stopped, she looked at Levy and thought of her friend's love of literature and continued to write, not stopping even when her hand cramped or when the clock struck twelve, then one, then two.

When Lucy tired of writing, she took a book that she had found on her bedside table and read aloud from it, glancing up every once in a while as her friends remained silent and unresponsive.

Sometime near six o'clock in the morning, Lucy's head jerked up as she heard the bed sheets shift. Levy's face was contorted in pain and her arm twitched slightly next to her still body. Without hesitation, Lucy activated the help card that Cana had given each of their friends in case there was a change in Levy's or Mira's condition. Not ten minutes later, Wendy stumbled into the infirmary, her appearance a sleepy mess but her eyes alert and worried.

"Lucy-san! What's happened?"

Lucy appreciated that the girl didn't question the fact that she had clearly been here all night. "It's Levy."

Without another word, Wendy walked to the bluenette and hovered her hands over the girl's body, a soft blue glow emitting from them. Lucy waited impatiently and by the time Wendy had finished her check-up, Erza, Gray, Natsu, Laxus, Gajeel, Lisanna and Elfman had also arrived. Cana and Juvia walked in just as Wendy looked up. The young girl's face was more serious than Lucy had ever seen it.

"She's worsened. There seems to be some sort of poison that's travelling through her body and preventing her from healing and waking up. It's a slow-moving poison though, because she's only just started to feel the pain, so it gives us a little more time to find a cure. Porlyusica-san is meant to arrive later today. Once she's here, we can start helping them."

Lucy stared at Levy's pained expression. Would Porlyusica make it in time?

* * *

There was a _thud_ as Erza's sword impaled another tree. She didn't know why, but she had a rather violent tendency to throw swords at innocent trees when she was angry.

_Thud._ Stupid. That's what she was. She knew all too well that it was probably a trap and yet she'd led her friends into this fruitless adventure anyway.

_Thud_. What kind of leader was she? What kind of _friend_ was she?

_Thud_. She knew Minerva had done this for a reason. Take out the brains and there's no chance of winning.

_Thud_. They'd played right into Minerva's hands. She'd seen Minerva say something to Mira. She knew they probably had the answers to curing Lucy's amnesia right within their reach. But at what price?

_Thud_. Two of her friends were on the brink of death. Wendy has said it was a poison. _Poison_. And if even Wendy couldn't cure them…she only hoped Porlyusica was as good as she'd led them to believe.

_Thud_. Stupid Minerva.

_Thud._ Stupid enchantmen-

"Don't you think you've killed enough trees?"

Erza's hand tightened over her sword in shock. That voice. She _knew_ that voice. But he couldn't be here. In the middle of the East Forest? She had to be imagining things.

"And no, you're not imagining me."

Damn.

Erza turned around and came face to face with Jellal Fernandes.

He looked just like she remembered. The bright blue hair in his eyes, the red tattoo on his face and the intense eyes that never failed to make her speechless.

"I heard about Lucy and what happened to Levy and Mira."

And just like that, the guilt came crashing down on her again.

"It's not your fault, you know. Lucy told me what happened," Jellal said softly, taking her hand before she could turn away. She laughed bitterly. He knew her better than she realised.

"Well, if you know what happened, then you should know that I led my friends into a trap, knowing exactly what I was doing. We played right into Minerva's hands because of my foolish actions. If I hadn't-" A finger stopped her from speaking any more and Erza stared in surprise at Jellal.

"If I hadn't, if I had. You can't change it now. We can only wait," Jellal smiled at her and she felt like her insides were melting. Even though her guilt fought to push itself to the front of her mind, she let it disappear for a instance as she relaxed against Jellal and closed her eyes, content to stay in his embrace.

* * *

In a crumbling castle far from Magnolia, Mikino Takara paced the floor while Minerva watched her, an amused expression on her face. The green-haired mage whirled around, annoyance in her eyes.

"When are you going to cooperate, Minerva? I've helped you far enough. You tell me what you know and I continue working with you. Otherwise, forget about it."

Minerva smiled at her companion's rage. "Oh, my dear Mikino. I know how desperate you are, really, but-"

"Desperate? Would you not be desperate if a clue to your search for a loved one was right in front of you, yet evaded you?" Mikino said quietly, only her eyes expressing her anger. "You agreed to give me information, Minerva. I've yet to hear it."

"Patience, young one," Minerva smiled. "I will tell you in time."

"In time? When is 'in time'?"

"You will see."

Mikino stopped. "I will not work with you anymore until you tell me some of your information. How am I to know if you are lying?"

"You don't. But I will not give you any information yet. You will get it all after this is over." Minerva's lip curled. "It would be devastating if you'd searched for four years for your sister and found a clue only to reject it because of your impatience, hm?"

"Are you threatening me, Minerva?"

"Of course not!" Minerva laughed. "Merely reminding you that if you stop now, you will never find your precious little sister," she smirked.

Mikino's grip on her sword tightened imperceptibly.

"How much information do you have?"

"Nuh-uh. My lips are sealed, sweetie. We'll talk again later. You're annoying me right now. Dismissed."

Mikino said nothing. A gentle breeze swirled through the room and in a split second, the mage had vanished.

Minerva smiled. "Time's running out, Fairies."

* * *

**Yay, chapter 11! **

**I tried to include some info about my OC and I'll keep doing that probably for the some of the next chapters. I hope you al liked the Jerza moment! (even _I_ was squealing when I wrote it) **

**Reviews are appreciated as always!**


	13. Chapter 12

**Hello my lovely readers!**

**Here's chapter 12; I hope you like it!**

* * *

Last Chapter

_"How much information do you have?"_

_"Nuh-uh. My lips are sealed, sweetie. We'll talk again later. You're annoying me right now. Dismissed."_

_Mikino said nothing. A gentle breeze swirled through the room and in a split second, the mage had vanished._

_Minerva smiled. "Time's running out, Fairies."_

* * *

Lucy sat at the edge of the river, feet dangling over the side of the path. Little fish were darting about in the muddy water and she immediately thought of Happy, though she wasn't really sure why. She hadn't really seen much of the little Exceed at all, since she'd woken up. She felt sad about that for some reason, so she vowed to go fishing with him one day. She wasn't sure where she'd gotten the idea of him fishing either. But for now, she would stay away from the infirmary. She felt too claustrophobic in there; trapped.

_"Well?"_

_Porlyusica straightened. "I'm afraid I cannot remove the poison."_

_"What?" Lucy clutched onto the woman's arm. "Please, you have to save them. You have to at least _try_!"_

_The healer snatched her arm away. "There is nothing to be done, girl. I cannot remove the poison."_

_"But can you slow it?" Erza inquired, her voice tense. Porlyusica looked at her. _

_"I may be able to. But the risks are high and I do not know if they will make it through. However, as we do not have the cure yet, this is our only chance."_

_"What is it? Spit it out," Gajeel scowled, his voice sounding rather strained. Porlyusica frowned disapprovingly at him before addressing the group._

_"There is a potion that can put the patient into a deep sleep; so deep that they appear dead. It will slow the poison to some extent, so that we have enough time to find a cure."_

_Lucy felt a rock of pressure lift from her shoulders. But Erza showed no such relief. "I thought such a potion was a myth?"_

_"It has been mentioned in many legends and stories," Porlyusica nodded. "But while it may be known under different names and different forms, it is essentially the same potion. It is called 'Mortem Vivitum'. It will take me a week to brew so in the meantime," Porlyusica stared at Wendy. "It is your job to look after them and make sure the poison does not travel any further than the neck. We were lucky the poison entered the torso, not the head. Once it affects their brains, all is lost."_

Lucy felt a pang of fear as she thought of her friends, unconscious in a blank white space. Were they dreaming? Wishing they could wake up? Or were they simply floating in darkness, as she had been?

She heard footsteps behind her but did nothing to greet the person. Guilt settled into her bones and in that moment, she felt as old as time itself.

"Hey."

Lucy knew that voice well. She would have followed it anywhere but at the moment, moving seemed like a rather difficult task. She felt a gentle breeze on her face that had not been there before and knew that the blue Exceed was with his partner, as usual.

She still did not turn around.

"You know…it's not your fault, Luce."

Her throat closed up involuntarily and she felt the hot sting of tears in her eyes but she refused to let them fall. Her friends, her _family_ could die. Because of her. Again.

She stiffened slightly as a hand touched her shoulder, its warm spreading throughout her body. She unwittingly leaned into his touch.

"Lushy…don't be sad…it's not your fault…" The blue Exceed landed in her lap and looked up to the blonde, surprised to see the unshed tears in her eyes.

"Lucy?" Natsu's voice was soft. Gently. And it felt like home.

"Natsu…what if I'm bad?"

The hand on her shoulder tightened slightly. "What do you mean?"

"What if all…this…is happening…because I'm a bad person? Everyone told me about what happened before. The whole thing with Michelle, Phantom Lord…maybe the only reason they keep targeting me is because I'm bad too? Maybe I belong with them. Fairy Tail mages don't hurt their friends. And I've broken that rule."

"No." The complete conviction in his voice startled her enough to jerk her head up. "You're not bad, Lucy. You're the most…_good_ person that I know. You could never be bad. You love your friends more than you love yourself."

She memorised the contours of his face, where cheekbones smoothed into his cheeks and the way his eyebrows curved delicately. His dark eyes were fierce, but they were always fierce. Fiercely loyal, fiercely determined, fiercely protecting. She remembered when the corners of his eyes would crinkle like autumn leaves underfoot when he smiled really wide, so wide that it felt like he could light up the world with a grin.

Lucy looked down. "But what if I turn bad? What if something goes wrong along the way and I become a horrible person? What if I fall to the other side and can't be saved?"

Natsu gently lifted her chin. Their eyes met. "Then I'd better hold onto you now."

* * *

Mikino Takara was angry.

And when Mikino Takara was pissed, she was not to be messed with.

_Crack_. Her spell bent the trees to encase a large rock so tightly that they snapped. But she kept bending them anyway, because she was pissed at Minerva Orlando and the tree currently had a face like Minerva Orlando.

She felt a little bad for the tree.

With a final burst of magical energy, both the trees and the rock exploded. Maybe she'd been a little too hard on the tree.

The birds twittered in the surrounding area and the lake soothed her as little waves lapped the shore.

Mikino sighed and walked across the surface of the lake. The spot was a little secret of hers, mainly because it was rarely frequented so people wouldn't stare at her like a freak. But it was nice too, and managed to soothe her despite her troubles.

She skipped a stone and watched as it bounced into the distance. She didn't see it stop.

Damn that Minerva. Mikino was starting to have suspicions. Who knew if the woman actually knew anything about Hoshime? Her sister had been gone for six years. Almost exactly six years. Her hope was wavering.

She thought about her sister for a while as she sat on the lake. Her kind smile and adoring eyes that look up to her every time she came home with a hot meal or a stupid present. Her warm tears when Mother and Father died. Her screams as they ran, and ran, and ran. The first time she saw magic. A brilliant lilac burst of magical energy.

Mikino realised too late that she had fallen right into a trap. Again.

She felt water splash over her head and the world blacked out.

_"Kino, take Shime and run! Don't look back. Take these to our safe place. We'll meet you there." Her mother pressed a cloth bag into her hands and she heard the tinkle of gold coins. A feeling of dread settled into the pit of her stomach._

_"Mothe-"_

_"Go! There's no time!"_

_Mikino gave her mother one last desperate glance, a quick kiss on the check and ran like the wind, Hoshime in her arms. She felt the icy sting of the winter air and the muddy puddles splashed her ankles but she didn't stop, not until she reached the cave where she knew they would be safe. _

_She collapsed to the floor, clutching Hoshime like a lifeline. The little girl opened her eyes sleepily. _

_"Kino? Where's Mama and Papa?"_

_Mikino swallowed. "They'll be here soon. Just sleep a little, okay? They'll come."_

_Mikino waited in the cave for two days before she had to leave to find food._

_The sisters waited for a week before they gave up._

"Hey!"

Mikino's eyes flew open.

Strangely, she was wet from head to toe. Confused, she looked around, to find the lake on her right and two heads obscuring her vision. Immediately, she clutched the hilt of her sword.

"What do you think you're doing?"

The pink-haired man scoffed. "Oh, it's not like we just saved your life or anything."

"Natsu!" the blonde reprimanded. Mikino felt her stomach drop. If that was the dragon slayer, then she must be…

"Lucy," the blonde smiled, sticked her hand out. "Pleased to meet you!"

Mikino ignored her hand and stood up. "Thanks for that, but I would've been okay anyway. I'll be on my way now."

"Whoa." Natsu grabbed her arm. "The least you could do is to tell us your name, weird, green-haired woman. You owe us."

Mikino's temper flared. "I don't owe you anything," she replied coldly. "I didn't ask to be saved by you. Good day."

And with that, she vanished with a gust of wind, leaving Natsu holding empty space.

* * *

"I must warn you, the journey will be perilous. Many dangers lurk on the road to Mount Gijimas."

Porlyusica's face was grave as she clutched the thick novel on the art of healing yet her expression was evenly matched by Erza's determination.

"So be it. We will not rest until our friends are safe and awake." Erza's eyes were wet but her stance remained strong and unbreakable. Lucy wished she were as strong as her friend.

"Team Natsu will go."

Everyone turned to the door of the infirmary. "Master!"

"Hey, what do you mean, they'll go? I'm going, and you aren't stoppin' me!" Gajeel growled, his eyes fierce. The Master nodded once.

"And for Mira?"

"I will."

The three who spoke simultaneously looked at each other in surprise. Lisanna and Elfman glanced curiously at Laxus. Master observed him.

"In this case…I think it may be best if Laxus goes. He is, after all, an S-Class mage with much experience and this will be an extremely dangerous mission."

The lightning dragon slayer nodded and departed. Lucy never knew what to think of him.

Master took one last look at the occupants of the infirmary, suddenly looking like he'd lived a hundred years of tragedy and heartbreak.

"Good luck, my children."

* * *

Mikino landed softly in the castle again. Right in front of Minerva.

"Ah, Mikino. Nice of you to join me. Care to tell me where you were?"

"No."

"Someone's in a grumpy mood," Minerva said, her smile amused. Mikino made sure her face was blank.

"Why did you tell me to come here, Minerva? Is it the main course already?"

Minerva laughed. "Heavens, no. That was just beverages before. It's starters now. And trust me when I say that things will start off with a bang."

* * *

**So that's chapter 12! I can't tell you how much your reviews mean to me. I just want to say a massive thank you to everyone who's reading my fic and an even BIGGER thank you to all those who have reviewed! I try to write the story depending on people's opinions so feel free to tell me your thoughts by sending me a PM or leaving a review! **

**Thanks again guys!**


	14. Chapter 13

**Hi everyone! **

**This is chapter 13; hope you enjoy! **

* * *

Last Chapter

"_Why did you tell me to come here, Minerva? Is it the main course already?"_

_Minerva laughed. "Heavens, no. That was just beverages before. It's starters now. And trust me when I say that things will start off with a bang."_

* * *

The trek up the mountain was silent.

Lucy felt out of place amongst all those S-Class mages and S-Class mages-to-be. She stuck by the Exceeds, because the air around them wasn't as suffocating.

Every time a new monster or challenge appeared, the others would take it out before Lucy could even touch her keys. A hydra went up in flames. A manticore froze. A tsuchigumo was sliced into pieces in the blink of an eye. A chimera was electrocuted. Half a dozen kappas were impaled by iron poles.

They had no shortage of rage to unleash.

When they finally reached the summit, Lucy felt uneasy. Porlyusica had said 'dangers'. She hadn't felt like the trip up had been all too dangerous. A couple of monsters here and there and then _BAM_ they were at the top.

And there was the tree.

Porlyusica had described it in such detail that Lucy knew exactly what it looked like even though she'd never even _heard_ of it. The tree was tall and towering and reminded her of oak trees. Or the cherry blossom trees in Magnolia.

There were three silver fruits on the tree. According to Porlyusica, they were the cure to the poison spreading in Levy and Mira's bodies. The group glanced around warily. There was no sign of any other living being.

To Lucy's left, Erza took a tentative step forward and the entire group tensed. And then all Lucy saw was red.

The explosion rocked the very mountain. The dust cleared, and a single figure stood in front of the plant. She had green hair.

"You!"

The woman merely stared at them, ignoring Natsu's outburst.

"We saved your life! And you're working for Minerva? We should've just left you to die!"

Lucy frowned at him. "We don't know if she is. Don't assume."

She eyed the dragon slayer coldly. "I would have survived without you. But really, thank you, o kind sir," she said dryly. "It was a very sweet gesture."

Natsu growled. He made to lunge forward, but someone else beat him to it.

A flash of lightning from Lucy's right flew towards the woman. She looked at Laxus and the lightning veered to the side, obliterating a rock. Lucy gulped.

"Who are you?" Erza demanded, her grip tight on her sword. The woman observed the group.

"I am Mikino Takara."

Lucy waited but the woman revealed no more. She gathered her courage. "Why are you here?"

Mikino's eyes flashed towards her and Lucy was startled by her cold, silver eyes. "To delay your mission."

* * *

In a stark, white room, two bodies lay, unconscious, as poison continued to travel through their body.

* * *

Lucy yelped as she ducked under a tree's flailing branches. What was with that, anyway? Who just bent trees and attacks and could even kinda manipulate Natsu's fire?

She dodged to the side as Gray ran past her, frustration clear on his face as his ice turned to water. Again. How could they all be having so much trouble with one mage? They had two S-Class mages with them!

Lucy glanced at the blur of fighting as Gray and Natsu flew back and rocks exploded from their impact. She clenched her teeth. "Gate of the Lion, I open thee: Leo!"

There was a golden shimmer before the spirit appeared. "Lucy, my love."

"Thanks for coming, Leo. Can you-"

"Loke."

"Hm?"

"I'd prefer it if you called me Loke."

Lucy looked at the spirit's face. He was a good actor but she could tell that the fact that she'd called him 'Leo' had upset him. "Sure. So, Loke, would you be able to give them a hand? I have a feeling that this woman is an elemental mage, which is why Natsu and Gray are having some trouble."

"Anything for you."

There was a golden blur and Loke flew into the fray. Lucy felt rather useless. Until she saw the tree. Unguarded.

With a determined grin, she ran to the tree, her hand on her whip at all times. She looked at the battle. It was still going strong. It was now or never.

Lucy took a deep breath and grabbed one of the silver fruits. Immediately, the ground started rumbling.

The group engaged in battle stopped briefly as the remaining fruits glowed silver and cracks split the uneven ground. Lucy stared at the fruit in her hand, astonished.

"Everyone! Retreat! Back to the guild!" Erza's voice found her through the chaos of the crumbling mountain and the Fairy Tail group fled.

Lucy didn't look back to see where Mikino had gone.

* * *

Minerva's face was cold and amused, and it terrified Mikino.

She wasn't afraid of many things but the pure pleasure in Minerva's face was enough to send a lion running.

"I am _so_ glad I invested in you, Mikino," Minerva drawled, tracing a long, red fingernail around her communication lacrima. For a second, the connection went static but Minerva flicked it once and it returned, full blast. Mikino wasn't sure she wanted to keep seeing Minerva's face.

"What was the point of my presence? It did not prevent them from getting the antidote."

"That wasn't the point, my dear," Minerva said idly, inspecting her nail polish. "The point is, now that they have the antidote, we lift their hopes and then crush them in the most heartrendingly dramatic way. We're getting to the main course now!"

Mikino tried not to seem disgusted.

"Right. Call me if you need anything else done."

She didn't bother with the 'ma'am'.

* * *

"How long will making the antidote take, Porlyusica-san?"

The healer glanced at the young dragon slayer. "A day to make and a week to brew. You must keep up your efforts."

Wendy's face was paler than usual and despite Carla's protests, she had not rested since the group had gone to get the antidote fruit. Lucy feared she would collapse. But they all knew she wouldn't stop.

A week passed quickly but not quickly enough for Lucy. She stayed by Levy and Mira's side when she wasn't writing, reading, eating or sleeping and she felt like the entire guild was waiting with bated breath.

And when they woke, it felt like the world unfroze.

Yet it felt like there was little to no time for celebration as the information the two girls revealed was less than pleasant.

"Frankly, I don't want to explode," Laxus remarked, glancing at the lacrimas as if they were going to spontaneously combust. "Is there another way?"

"Minerva wouldn't have allowed it," Erza replied, her voice tight with barely contained anger. Lucy felt the pool of guilt inside her expand.

"It's a choice. A sacrifice. Remember that note? 'Who is the lamb being led to the slaughterhouse'. That's another way of saying 'who will be sacrificed," Levy sighed, rubbing her temples. Lucy didn't think it was fair that they had to work as soon as they woke but they were on a time limit and who knew when Minerva would strike again?

"So she's making us choose between the dragon slayers and Lucy?" Lisanna exploded angrily. "That's bullshit!"

Gray scowled and looked at the window, as if he could find Minerva through his strong will alone. "We'll find Minerva. And we'll be prepared. She won't catch us off guard again. And she won't hurt anyone else." He glanced at Juvia and Lucy felt her heart melt for the two. "We need to start looking for Minerva. Warren will be back with his team tomorrow, from their scouting mission."

No one noticed that in the corner of the room, a white haired mage gazed fearfully at the note in her hand.

* * *

The two girls rested in bed for a week, simply because of the damage the spell had inflicted. According to Levy, the antidote was vile. And she had to drink it every single day.

Lucy showed Levy all the writing she'd done. One day, as the girls ate their breakfast in a cute café, Lucy produced a thick, leather bound book.

"Levy-chan…I think this is for you."

Levy took one look at the novel and squealed. Loudly. "LU-CHAN! You finished it! Oh, I'm so proud of you!"

The two girls chatted all morning but Lucy was itching to tell her best friend something. Something about her time as Sleeping Beauty and a certain Iron Dragon Slayer.

"So…has Gajeel talked to you at all?"

A blush decorated Levy's cheeks. "Not really, Lu-chan. He just said, 'Good to see you back, shrimp' and walked off. He knows I hate it when he calls me 'shrimp'!"

Lucy grinned. "Well, I'm sure he failed to mention that he was by your side nearly as much as I was, which is to say, every day."

"Lu-chan! No teasing the sick and injured!"

"You're not even sick anymore!"

"That's besides the point!"

* * *

Three weeks had passed since Lucy had seen Minerva or Mikino. Unlike with anyone she had encountered since she'd woken up, Mikino made her feel strange. Like her mind was being tickled but she couldn't catch the person tickling her. It was strange and Lucy felt unnerved.

The guild wasn't as loud and rowdy as usual. An unusual air of concentration lingered and centred on a group of Fairy Tail's strongest mages. Plus Lucy.

"We could lure her out?"

"She'd probably realise it's a trap before even move."

"What about a request to meet her?"

"Hmm…maybe. We can ask to meet her then attack her all at once? Even she can't fight against an entire guild."

"We cannot defeat her."

Everyone looked at Mira. Her hair shadowed her face and an air of defeat and acceptance hung around her. Erza squared her jaw.

"Yes, we can! We will not know until we try-"

"There's no point!"

Erza fell silent and looked surprised at the helplessness on Mira's face. "I...she told me something. She gave me a note." A small silence. "The spell won't break even if Minerva dies. Lucy won't get her memories back. The memories are connected to the mage's life force and if she dies, the memories will vanish. Originally, the mage who cast the spell would give the victim their memories but in this case…"

"We already have the memories and we can't give them back if we don't want our dragon slayers exploding," Gray realised. "Mira, why didn't you mention this earlier?"

"I…I didn't know what we would do and I didn't want everyone to just sit around, depressed," Mira replied sadly, hanging her head. Lisanna placed a comforting hand on her sister's shoulder.

"Don't worry, Mira-nee! There's definitely a point in defeating Minerva; no one gets away with hurting Fairy Tail!"

A large cheer was heard from many miles away, emanating from the Fairy Tail guild. Beer flowed freely and thoughts and ideas were exchanged, for the sake of their friends and their family. Because to them, nakama meant more than anything.

Meanwhile, a green-haired woman observed from afar. The smallest of smiles adorned her lips.

* * *

**That's chapter 13! I hope you enjoyed it. I'm planning on writing a couple more chapter then wrapping it up because I don't really want this to drag on longer than necessary.**

**Also, URGENT MESSAGE!**

**I'm going on a holiday during the summer holidays and I won't get back till mid January. This means that the fic may have to be put on hold for now. I'll try to write whenever I can but chances are I won't really get time. I'm so sorry! If I can, I'll try get a chapter up on Thursday, before I fly out on Friday. Thanks to everyone for your continual support!**

**Reviews are appreciated! :)**


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